Richard Balfour-Lynn, a well-known name in the English wine sector, has announced his bankruptcy due to his inability to meet a hefty compensation order stemming from a recent stock market scandal that has left many investors in distress.
Background on the Scandal
The Takeover Appeal Board required Balfour-Lynn to pay millions to investors harmed by dishonest practices linked to his property investment company.
He co-founded Balfour Winery in Kent but has now revealed that he simply does not have the financial resources to satisfy such a large compensation claim.
In light of this situation, Balfour-Lynn was left with no choice but to seek bankruptcy protection.
He voiced his shock over the turn of events, emphasizing that he had always prided himself on managing his financial obligations prudently throughout his life.
Career and Financial History
At 71, Balfour-Lynn amassed his wealth through various ventures in property and retail.
His impressive resume includes leadership roles at Liberty, a renowned department store on London’s Regent Street, as well as CEO of MWB Group—a property investment firm linked to Liberty—and involvement with the Hotel du Vin and Malmaison hotel brand, which offers serviced office spaces around the UK.
The allegations against him stem from actions taken with two other executives, with the Takeover Appeal Board finding that they conspired to mislead the market regarding their control of the company, which entered administration in 2012.
They were criticized for hiding their combined shareholdings and failing to make a legally required public offer.
Consequences and Future Outlook
Balfour-Lynn, along with colleagues Jagtar Singh and Richard Aspland-Robinson, was ordered to pay a staggering £33 million to MWB shareholders.
Singh and Aspland-Robinson had already declared bankruptcy in 2022.
Although he initially sought to challenge the ruling, claiming he could manage only a £2 million payment towards the owed compensation, the Takeover Panel dismissed his appeal in August.
With no means to cover the total amount required of him, Balfour-Lynn was declared bankrupt just last week.
He lamented that eligible shareholders would now receive nothing after the Panel turned down his £2 million offer, which was to be funded by his wife, Leslie, heir to the Sega video game fortune.
She has assumed full ownership of Balfour Winery.
Now semi-retired, Balfour-Lynn explained that his investments were largely locked in MWB shares, which he had not sold off.
His hope was that the £2 million offer would have helped bring some relief to those affected by his past decisions during a period of instability about 15 years ago, when his company was nearly undone by the financial crisis.
Source: Decanter
