A Newport-based advice firm linked to the British Steel Pension Scheme scandal and run by the founder of Cash Calc has stopped trading and is now under investigation by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
According to the FSCS website, the lifeboat scheme began its investigation into Niche Independent Financial Advisers Ltd last week (May 26).
It is one of the companies associated with claims regarding BSPS. According to Companies House, Cash Calc founder Ray Adams is a director of the firm and he is listed as such on the FCA register.
The FSCS said that Niche Independent Financial Advisers Ltd stopped trading earlier this month.
In a letter seen by FTAdviser, the board of directors of the company decided to commence liquidation proceedings having regard to its financial position.
According to the FCA register, the firm has been authorised since November 2007.
Niche Independent Financial Advisers Ltd traded as Niche Pension Specialists and is a separate and distinct company from Niche Sport & Finance Limited which trades as Niche IFA.
According to the FCA register, the two companies are based at the same address.
The BSPS case
During 2017, BSPS members were asked to make decisions about their pensions as part of a restructure of the scheme.
About 8,000 members transferred out of the scheme, with transfers collectively worth about £2.8bn.
But concerns about the suitability of the transfers were soon raised, leading to an intervention from the Financial Conduct Authority that resulted in a number of advice firms – key players in the debacle – stopping their transfer advice service, while others went out of business.
The debacle created a mountain of liabilities, which lawyers believe could end up costing the industry up to £300mn.
The FCA announced last year that it plans to deliver £71.2mn in compensation to former members of the scheme who received unsuitable advice.
The scheme covers those who transferred out between May 26, 2016 and March 29, 2018.
However, in February this year a number of steelworkers wrote to the FCA expressing concerns about the regulator’s calculations for the scheme.
amy.austin@ft.com
