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On 8 June the Financial Services Authority (FSA) applied to have Keydata Investment Services Ltd (Keydata) placed into administration on the grounds that it was insolvent.
Today PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC) has announced that as a result of concerns around some Keydata products it has suspended certain interest payments and certain redemption rights.
The FSA is now working closely with the administrators to reach a solution for investors as fast as possible and is also in discussions with the Serious Fraud Office about the potentially missing assets underlying some of these products. If it emerges that Keydata has caused customers to suffer a financial loss and cannot meet its liabilities, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) may be able to help.
The concerns only came to light during PwC’s detailed forensic examination of Keydata’s business and it remains a complex situation.
PwC is also endeavouring to sell as much of Keydata’ business as possible and will continue to run the remainder of the business.
Products affected
This situation is constantly under review and further updates will be made as soon as possible:
Secure Income Bond 1, 2, 3
At the moment, no income can be paid out to investors and redemptions have been put on hold. PwC is trying to trace the assets underlying these products.
PwC will shortly be writing to customers due an interest payment today.
Income Property Bond 1 – 6
At the moment, no income will be paid to investors and redemptions have been put on hold.
Secure Income Bond 4, Secure Income Plan 1-12 & 14 and Defined Income Plan 1-8, Special Editions and other Lifemark branded products
Investors will continue to receive income from their investments, but redemptions have been put on hold. The assets underlying these products are secure.
Products not affected
Third party products and products backed by major financial institutions
People with money invested in the funds where Keydata provided third party administration services and those backed by major financial institutions are not affected – there are no concerns about their investments.
PwC will be providing further updates through its Keydata website regularly. Customers can also call their helpline on 020 7804 4424, but at this stage no further information is available.
The FSA has been investigating Keydata since discovering that the firm had been targeting investors with potentially misleading advertising materials and discovered a number of tax irregularities with some of Keydata’s ISA products. These were referred to HM Revenue & Customs. The FSA is also working closely with other regulators including the Serious Fraud Office and overseas authorities to help resolve this situation.
