Company Director Sentenced for Fraudulent Covid Loan Applications and Misuse of Funds
A company director has received a suspended prison sentence after fraudulently securing two government-backed Covid Bounce Back Loans worth £100,000 and spending significant sums on gambling, cryptocurrency investments and personal transfers.
Haralambos Ioannou, 49, obtained the loans for his glazing business, Opti-Bond (GB) Ltd, despite the scheme allowing only one loan per company. While the first £50,000 was used legitimately for business purposes, the second was diverted for personal use in breach of the scheme’s rules.
Ioannou, of Cow Lane, Edlesborough, Buckinghamshire, and formerly of South London, was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on 7 October 2025 to 22 months in custody, suspended for two years. He was also ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work, pay £40,000 in compensation and was disqualified from acting as a company director for five years.
Investigators found that between late June and early July 2020, Ioannou received the two £50,000 loans within eight days. Around £20,000 was transferred to his personal account, from which about £25,000 was spent on gambling. A further £8,000 went to investment and crypto firms, £6,000 was withdrawn in cash, and £16,000 was transferred to an account in the name of his then-wife.
Opti-Bond (GB) Ltd, which was incorporated in October 2019, later entered liquidation in November 2021. Ioannou failed to disclose the company’s first Bounce Back Loan to the appointed liquidator, as required by law.
David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at The Insolvency Service, said
“Haralambos Ioannou exploited the Bounce Back Loan Scheme by fraudulently applying for a second Bounce Back Loan when companies could apply for one loan of up to £50,000 for support during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Insolvency Service remains committed to taking robust action against those who abused the Bounce Back Loan Scheme.”
This case highlights ongoing efforts by the Insolvency Service to hold directors accountable for the misuse of taxpayer-funded Covid support schemes.