The Financial Services Compensation Scheme has received 80 claims against a discretionary fund manager which collapsed following intervention by the regulator in 2018.
Organic Investment Management Limited failed with the lifeboat scheme on March 18, with claims for compensation relating to self-invested personal pensions, personal pension transfers, pension advice and investment portfolio activities.
In December 2018 the Financial Conduct Authority moved to stop London-based Organic conducting any regulated activity and ordered it not to dispose of or diminish the value of any of its assets.
It came amid concerns about illiquid and potentially high-risk investments in the fund manager's model portfolios.
The company brought in administrators shortly after and the FSCS has already declared a number of advice firms which were embroiled in the debacle in default.
The lifeboat body has paid out more than £100,000 in compensation on an advice firm which placed client capital with the failed discretionary fund manager and at least £28,000 on the recently-failed NJ Associates Financial Services Limited.
The FSCS said is was aware FCA authorised advisers recommended clients invest with Organic or advised transferring existing pensions or investments through a Sipp.
The lifeboat body has encouraged clients of advisers still trading to first take their complaints to the advice firm and the Financial Ombudsman Service, but said claims against failed FCA authorised advisers should be directly submitted to the FSCS.
rachel.mortimer@ft.com
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