Ban for director of unlawful care home investment scheme
A former director has been banned from being a company director for 14 years after the Insolvency Service found he had taken £57 million from investors in an unlawful care home investment scheme.
Robin Forster was a director at Qualia Care Properties Ltd and Qualia Care Developments Ltd which ran an unauthorised investment fund, promising investors returns which were highly unlikely. Investors lost more than £57 million through the fund which advised them to purchase long-term leases for rooms within a care home managed by Qualia Care Ltd. The rooms were then sub-let back to other Qualia companies.
Shortly before Qualia Care Properties Ltd and Qualia Care Developments Ltd went into administration, Forster also transferred funds to a connected company, depriving creditors of over £2 million. The court held that Forster should have known that at least £5.9 million was owed to investors at this time.
The High Court found in favour of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) that this was an unauthorised collective investment scheme. Forster was subsequently banned as a company director until 2038. Forster will not be allowed to be involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company without permission of the court.
The court also agreed that Forster had made false and misleading statements about the sustainability of the investment scheme.
The FCA will now seek to recover the lost funds.
The original article can be seen here