FSCS pays out £3m on Bentley-Leek claims

Carmen Reichman
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The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has paid out £3m in claims related to collapsed advisory firm Bentley-Leek Financial Management (BLFM), which had advised clients to invest in failed overseas property schemes that it was also in charge of.

The FSCS officially declared the IFA in default in June after which it received 262 claims over losses. The scheme said it has so far made 87 decisions and made offers on 70. More than 300 customers lost money after investing a combined £35m in failed property vehicle Bentley-Leek Properties, which invested in property developments in the UK, Dubai, Canada and Zanzibar, between 5 March 2004 and 23 November 2010. Two BLFM directors, Mark Bentley-Leek and Mustafa Dervish, were fined and banned by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in October for misleading investors to invest in t...

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