Insolvency firm Begbies Traynor has said it is “making progress” on a case involving a collapsed Bolton-based bonds firm, which it said took more than £30m from members of the public when it collapsed.
The firm said it has discovered a “a web of companies” linked to Harewood where funds have been transferred both directly and indirectly.
Harewood invested into several house building projects on behalf of around 1,400 investors and offered returns of eight per cent, which attracted £31.8m from 900 investors.
Paul Stanley and Dean Watson of Begbies Traynor in Manchester were appointed joint liquidators of five companies connected to Harewood Associates - Southworth Construction, Monmouth Regent Capital, Sherwood Homes, Harewood Venture Capital and Ramsay Investment - in June last year. The company was moved into liquidation in December 2019.
Begbies Taynor said that because the “business was unregulated...any individual investor losses are highly unlikely to be covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme”.
The firm owed to creditors amounts from £5,000 to just under £800,000.
But the insolvency firm said it is “a step closer to closing in” on where £32m of investor funds had disappeared to.
Mr Stanley, regional managing partner of Begbies Traynor in Manchester, said: “We demanded repayment and petitioned the court to have some of the companies wound up.
“In order to allow transparency across the companies, we have been appointed as liquidators over these companies as well by the secretary of state following a very sensible and practical approach by the Official Receiver’s offices in Manchester and Lytham.”
He continued: “These new appointments will give us legal access to bank accounts where money was moved through and over 200 solicitors’ files which were handled for the companies.
“Our team is also assisting government departments who are now addressing deep concerns expressed to us from investors over the conduct of the directors.”
Mr Stanley said “many” investors have “had their lives destroyed by losing significant amounts of money”.
“We will continue to update investors and creditors with the progress being made in accordance with the insolvency legislation,” he added.
