Sections
Questions to be asked in Keys about Premier Low Risk Fund
The long running campaign by the Premier Shareholders Group (PSG) to seek a satisfactory resolution of their grievances about the management and performance of the ‘unregulated’ Premier Low Risk Fund PLC (PLRF) - which the PSG claim is anything but ‘Low Risk’ – seems at last to be paying off.
Michael MHK, David Cannan is set to ask the Treasury Minister, Allan Bell a two part question: (a) Whether the Financial Supervision Commission is taking action to address the grievances of the Premier Shareholders Group in respect of the management of the Premier Low Risk Fund plc; and
(b) if he will make a full disclosure of the beneficial ownership of the Premier Low Risk Fund plc and the underlying financial problems?
The PSG claim a large number of pensioners were enticed to buy into the fund with the promises of capital security and guarantees only to have half their investment wiped out by charges, hidden withdrawal penalties and poor performance of the fund.
PSG also claim that in the meantime hundreds of thousands of pounds was paid into companies in the Caribbean to reward the promoters of the fund – a fund which PSG say should never have been promoted, let alone sold, to pensioners; as it was an Experienced Investor Fund (EIF) designed for high net worth individuals or sophisticated investors.
Courts elsewhere have ruled similar traded endowment funds are ‘high risk’, especially if they are geared by borrowing money to purchase the investments, and the UK Ombudsman has upheld complaints of a similar nature to those of the PSG.
However, in the IOM the story has been different and the Manx Herald is only aware of one case where a payout has been made to an investor in the PLRF; although the rest appear to have been rejected by the Financial Services Ombudsman Scheme.
However, officials at the Financial Supervision Commission appear to have accepted all was not well with the way the original EIF regulations were drafted and changes were introduced two years ago.
Whether this latest development will bring new hope to investors, or former investors, in the fund that they will have their grievances properly investigated remains to be seen, but the Manx Herald doubts it will be the end of the story.
del.icio.us |
Digg
Email to a friend
Print version
Plain text
These Freedom to Flourish Funds are known as "Experienced Investor Funds" and as the name suggests are designed exclusively for institutional or high net worth, sophisticated investors.
Should an Island based Fund operator decide to target pensioner’s as investors - and publish misleading advice to encourage them to "invest" in their EIF Fund - the FSC and the OFT place the entire blame on "introducers" for assisting in circulating the Fund operator’s misleading advice.
Alice in Wonderland has the “Freedom to Flourish” on the Isle of Man - but even she couldn’t make this up!
Regardless of the number of people who have received compensation payments from the directors of the Premier Low Risk Fund plc” such payments should appear in Fund’s annual accounts and the auditor’s (Deloitte) financial statement to the Fund’s shareholders. Nothing has ever been published.
If the directors were liable to make one payment then they may be equally liable to make sizeable payments to hundreds more people: and under these circumstances the multi-million pound loan owed by the Fund to the Royal Bank of Scotland International will be in jeopardy.
The directors use secretive Caribbean shell companies for paying fees and commissions to unregulated/unlicenced “introducers" - who they represent to the public as “professional” financial advisors. Perhaps compensation payments are channelling through one of these companies?
Either way shareholders in a plc have a legal right to know how their money is disbursed.
The Isle of Man regulatory authorities conveniently turn a blind eye towards all this mischief.
What a way to run a railway!
Can everyone now have their annual accounts paid for by the Fund?
The directors are responsible for the management of the Fund, a public limited company, and as the Fund itself is an inert object incapable of criminal intention any irregularities are entirely the responsibility of the directors and/or the Fund’s auditors Deloitte.
What else will be discovered about this Fund?
Don’t rely on any help in finding out from the Isle of Man Office of Fair Trading and Financial Supervision Commission!
This advice caused hundreds of pensioners to transfer their life savings to the directors.
Within a few short years the pensioners had lost up to 30% of their savings and faced another 30% loss if they attempted to rescue their money.
Some Building Society!
And what of the Isle of Man Regulatory Authorities?
Yes you’re right! They will defend the directors come hell or high water!
NEVER INVEST OR DEPOSIT MONEY ON THE ISLE OF MAN!
EIF´s were not subject to any form of control or regulation giving the Fund operators the “freedom to flourish” by doing exactly as they pleased.
In the case of Premier this included advising hundreds of pensioners to transfer their life savings to the Fund because it offered capital security and guarantees and was similar to investing in a Building Society.
The Isle of Man government may have abolished EIFs – but the fact that hundreds of pensioners are still suffering the aftershock of their marketing initiative does not appear to concern them!
NEVER INVEST A PENNY ON THE ISLE OF MAN
Paper shredders working overtime?
The future generations of thousands of families will treat the words “Isle of Man” with disgust and disdain as they recall the government that sanctioned the theft of their family inheritance.
The genie has left the bottle .... NEVER, EVER INVEST OT DEPOSIT MONEY ON THE ISLE OF MAN!
If you have more information/evidence to share why not comment? Remember to ALWAYS tell the truth, and only quote facts which are fully supported with documentary evidence. Don’t attempt to incriminate the “introducer” who received commission payments for hawking Premier’s misleading sales brochures. They are (maybe) as innocent as you and holding them responsible is exactly what the Isle of Man government and Premier’s directors want you to do so that all blame can be transferred onto them!
Post your comment