Clients of Athlone investment firm invited to seek compensation
Clients of an Athlone-based investment firm which has gone into liquidation have been invited to apply for compensation from a statutory fund if they've incurred losses as a result.
Earlier this year, liquidators were appointed to the Athlone-based investment firm Strand Investments & Finance Ltd, trading as 123 Financial Services.
The liquidators were put in place after the Central Bank expressed concern about "a number of apparently irregular transactions or activities" at the company.
The Central Bank said the firm had approximately 700 clients, all of whom are based in Ireland.
Strand Investments, trading as trading as 123 Financial Services, had its registered office at, and operated from, 15 Castlemaine Street in Athlone.
In this week's Westmeath Independent, a notice was published to clients of the local investment firm.
It stated that the Investor Compensation Company DAC ('the ICCL') had been set up to pay compensation to "eligible clients of failed authorised investment firms that could not return money or investment instruments to them".
On its website, the ICCL describes itself as "Ireland’s statutory ‘fund of last resort’ for customers of authorised investment firms".
The scheme is funded by the investment industry through the payment of statutory levies and can pay statutory compensation to eligible investors in certain circumstances.
There are limits to the amounts the ICCL may pay in compensation. It can pay only 90% of the amount lost, subject to a maximum of €20,000, to each investor.
The notice from the ICCL in this week's Westmeath Independent went on to say that Aiden Murphy and Declan Hanly of Crowe Ireland had been "appointed by the High Court... to assess and certify claims for compensation made by eligible clients of Strand".
The notice said that, under the Investor Compensation Act, 1998, the ICCL was obliged to "inform all eligible clients of Strand of the above ruling by the High Court and invite them to submit a claim application".
The ICCL said claim forms and information on entitlements under the Act had been provided "to each eligible client" of Strand "based on the details provided to us by the joint administrators".
It went on to state that claim forms should be returned, fully completed and signed, by December 31 next.
It added: "If you are a client of Strand and believe you are eligible to claim compensation, and you have not received a claim form, you should contact the Joint Administrators via email at: strand.investments@crowe.ie
"Any application for compensation under the Act must be submitted on the claim form issued by the ICCL.
"Clients should only submit a claim form if they believe that Strand has failed, or is likely to fail, to return money or investment instruments which they entrusted to it along with supporting documentation for the losses they have incurred.
"Claims must be in respect of eligible investment services provided by Strand to clients, in accordance with the Act."
Mr Murphy and Mr Hanly were initially appointed as provisional liquidators to Strand in January.
At that time, the Central Bank said it became aware last September of the death of one of the firm's directors, Bernard Kinahan, of Barrybeg, Athlone.
The Central Bank's statement in January said it had concerns about issues including "an absence of ongoing governance or management of the daily activities of the firm since the passing of Bernard Kinahan", and "a number of apparently irregular transactions or activities undertaken in relation to some customer accounts that require further assessment and review".
The company appeared to have "effectively ceased trading" since September, but, on December 10, the Central Bank formally directed it to "suspend the provision of all regulated financial services" in order to protect its clients.