The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has banned and fined a former director of London Capital & Finance (LCF) for breaking financial promotion rules.

Floris Jakobus Huisamen has been fined £31,800 by the regulator and been banned from working in financial services.

AN FCA investigation found that Huisamen was responsible for compliance at LCF but recklessly signed off hundreds of financial promotions, which contributed to thousands of investors being misled.

LCF marketed minibonds to retail investors. Financial promotions, signed off by Huisamen, presented a misleading picture of the minibonds, making them appear a far more attractive investment than they were.

The FCA also stated that investors were not given the full picture about the risks of these products, including the presence of hidden charges and the unsustainable nature of the lending being carried out by LCF.

Joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, Therese Chambers, said: “Huisamen should have ensured LCF’s financial promotions were ‘fair, clear, and not misleading’.

“However, under him, the approval process became an ineffective tick-box exercise – as a result, thousands of investors were persuaded to invest on the basis of highly misleading statements.”

Huisamen signed off these financial promotions despite his own concerns about LCF’s strategy and according to the regulator, he failed to provide proper scrutiny or sufficiently challenge senior management.

In particular, Huisamen failed to obtain evidence of the claims being made, allowed promotions that gave a misleading impression that the minibonds were regulated by the FCA, and continued to approve promotions even when he became aware of inaccurate claims.

“His failings contributed to thousands of retail investors losing significant amounts of money,” Chambers added. “It is right that he can no longer work in financial services.”

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