Adviser who cost investor £2m still working

MP hits out at watchdog for failing to ban him

A “DECEITFUL” Yorkshire financial adviser who cost an investor £2m and his marriage is “incredibly” allowed to continue working by regulators despite being ruled against in court and avoiding further legal action after liquidating his company, an MP has revealed.

Conservative Kevin Hollinrake described the adviser, Scott Robinson, as a “clever salesman” with a “long and extremely chequered history of providing investment advice”, who moved his clients into a new firm after being sued for advising on investments which failed and were not covered by professional indemnity insurance.

Mr Hollinrake described the case of his Thirsk and Malton constituent Andy Mohun-Smith, who lost £2m after trusting Mr Robinson and said the saga had a “devastating” impact on his life and health, with the stress involved “undoubtedly a major factor” in the break-up of his marriage.

The MP criticised the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for allowing Mr Robinson to continue working as an approved adviser because it was concerned that otherwise it could be “depriving an individual of their livelihood”.

Mr Hollinrake told the story of Mr Mohun-Smith and another constituent, known as Helen, during a Westminster Hall debate. He said it was “truly astounding” that Mr Robinson was allowed to continue working given his history.

In 2014, Mr Mohun-Smith was awarded £2.2m in damages at the High Court after Mr Robinson failed to attend a hearing.

But the adviser was given a reprieve as the Court of Appeal in April 2016 ordered another High Court hearing of the case. Mr Robinson, however, put his company TBO Investments into voluntary liquidation August 2016 before the new hearing could

take place. The MP said it ended up “thwarting any attempt by my constituents to take legal action to recover their losses and leaving his own lawyers indeed out of pocket”.

The adviser then “phoenixed”, or moved, his former clients into another firm he owned, Mount Sterling Wealth, which he resigned from four days ago in a move described by Mr Hollinrake as “perhaps coincidental, perhaps not”.

Mr Robinson remains approved by the FCA.

Mr Hollinrake said: “I have met with Andrew Bailey, the chief executive of the FCA and spoken to senior executives in the FCA itself, but incredibly the only justification I can get so far of this continuing designation of Mr Scott Robinson as an approved person is that they were concerned that they may be depriving an individual of their livelihood - this individual, with this chequered record.

“You may ask – what about the deprivation of my constituents’ livelihoods, of their income, of their investments, of their hard earned money?”

“Is this not what the FCA should be principally concerned with? The regulator we entrust to make consumers, investors and our businesses, make sure they are fairly treated, has many questions to answer. It needs to take a long, hard look at itself.”

Mount Sterling Wealth declined to comment.