The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) delayed shutting down failed discretionary fund manager Beaufort Securities to allow the FBI to carry out an undercover operation, according to reports.
The financial watchdog allowed Beaufort to continue carrying out regulated activity beyond December to give US prosecutors the time needed to gather evidence to bring charges against the firm, the Times said. The firm was eventually placed into insolvency on 2 March following an urgent application by the FCA to the High Court. The regulator said it carried out an assessment of the financial positions of both Beaufort Securities and Beaufort Asset Clearing Services, which led it to believe both firms were insolvent. Last Friday, the US Department of Justice unsealed an indictment that ...
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