The Isle of Man Financial Services Authority (IOMFSA) said the licence had been revoked for several reasons, including that PGIOM had not met audit requirements to provide financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2016 or paid outstanding fees from its last annual licence and certain administrative penalties.
PGIOM also failed to obtain “run-off” professional indemnity insurance (PII) cover “in respect of claims arising from past act or omissions”, the regulator added.
Failed company
The Premier Group went into liquidation in June 2016 after IoM authorities ordered the New Earth Group to wind up three unregulated funds, for which the crown dependency’s taxpayers will have to foot the bill.
One of the funds was the Eco Resources Fund which invested in bamboo plantations in Nicaragua, while another fund invested in the development and ownership of recycling facilities in the UK.
Around 3,250 investors put £292m ($378m, €328m) into the fund, the majority of whom fear they will lose all or a significant part of their money.
In May, the IOMFSA confirmed it was undertaking a review of unregulated investment funds.
Go after third parties
In July 2017, the liquidators suggested to investors that they pursue third party claims as a measure of last resort to try recover all or part of their investment.
The Premier Shareholder’s Group, a campaign group for investors, said the company had paid large commissions to “unqualified and unlicensed” agents to target pensioners by marketing their funds at low risk.
The group also claims investors were locked in with “punitive” exit fees, often as high as 30%, which they were not told about when they signed up.
However, in June 2016, the former director of Premier Group John Bourbon denied these accusations, saying “It is highly unlikely that anybody could have a significant investment in Premier Group without understanding the risk”.
At the time, Bourbon insisted all fees and charges were clearly set out in the offer document that investors were required to sign to confirm their status as an experienced investor.
He also said in June 2017 that the regulatory action was “something of a witch hunt”.
