UK-based financial advice company Nexus Independent Financial Advisers and its DFM arm Nexus Investment Managers have gone into administration.
Joint administrators Carl Faulds and Nicola Layland of Leonard Curtis were appointed by the high court on 26 January 2023.
Shortly after, on 31 January, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) placed regulatory restrictions on the two companies, to prevent them from carrying out regulated activities and limiting access to their assets. This came after the FCA said that firms’ director “may have taken a total of over £2m ($2.46m, €2.28m) in unauthorised and/or inappropriate withdrawals from clients of the firms”.
The administrators said their appointment was deemed necessary because of the sole director’s “absence from the business” and concerns relating to their conduct.
Faulds and Layland have retained the remaining management team, while the business has been marketed for sale by appointed agent Hilco Valuation Services.
They added that the FCA has already received a number of bids from “reputable and appropriately FCA authorised providers”.
Faulds continued: “We are liaising closely with the FCA through the sale process, whose main role is to ensure that client interests are protected, and we expect a sale of the business and voluntary transfer of clients to take place within the next 14 days.”
Layland said: “We are grateful to the management team who have been acting responsibly under guidance from the FCA, to deal with the unfortunate circumstances regarding the director’s absence from the company and have been assisting us as administrators.”
Nexus Independent Financial Advisers and Nexus Investment Managers are in no way associated, affiliated or have any connection with Nexus Insurance Brokers, Nexus Financial Services and Nexus Financial Advisers – which are all part of the Dubai-based Nexus Group.
Nexus Independent Financial Advisers and Nexus Investment Managers are in no way associated, affiliated or have any connection with Nexus Global IFA Network or Blacktower Financial Management Group.