There is going to be an arrest today based on evidence obtained by The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) of an individual involved in a "ponzi" type money go round scheme where 10s of millions of dollars have gone south.
There is conjecture though as to who the individual might be. There are a number of SFO investigations currently active as listed on their website. Those involved with investor money, and with more than $20m of losses are as follows:
- Aorangi Securities
- B'On Financial Services
- Bridgecorp
- Capital+Merchant Finance
- Dominion Finance
- Five Star
- Hanover Finance
- Kiwi Finance
- Nathan Finance
- National Finance
- South Canterbury Finance
- WSD Global Markets
All the above have been involved in dodgy shell games with other peoples money so it is anyone's guess just who it might be.
In my opinion the most likely contenders are Hanover Finance, Aorangi Securities and South Canterbury Finance.
The last two entities are just two of Allan Hubbard's failed financial vehicles and have been under investigation for a number of months by the SFO and other financial oversight bodies but the investigation is unlikely to be finished yet due to the complications surrounding bookkeeping issues, the sum of money involved and the complex interrelation of insider companies lending money to each other.
There has been some indication though from evidence thus far disclosed that there has been some sort of "ponzi" like money go round, with fake investments, forged documents and lack of full disclosure or any disclosure at all with the bulk of investments made during the last two years or so.
To me though
the most likely contender for manacles today will be either
Mark Hotchin or Eric Watson from the failed Hanover Finance group.
In the dying days of Hanover many millions were transferred from the company to the personal accounts of the aforementioned and for many more years before that the company operated on a knife edge cashflow wise as dividends were stripped and short term money was invested in long term assets - as most finance companies did.
Hanover has been under the shadow of the SFO for most of 2010 and only a few weeks ago pressure was put on directors as they faced some "serious questions" from an SFO ready to finally grab one of the more high profile individuals from New Zealand finance company failures over the three or four years.
From the list of Finance companies above there are already a number of individuals as directors facing court time in 2011 and some have already been charged with other financial misdemeanors and worse and have either walked or faced a slap on the hand with the proverbial bus ticket.
Hanover is the most high profile finance company failure bar the Allan Hubbard Saga and Hotchin and Watson certainly do not have the support that Hubbard has had and would be a feather in the SFO cap as they seemed to have reached a frenzy of activity over the latter part of 2010 after being relatively quiet over the last 4 years on finance company failures.
The scalp of either Watson of Hotchin would be a major public relations coup for them and for that reason, along with their clear hide and seek nature with investors funds of their former business, I will take a punt and pick them for court time in 2011.
Related Share Investor Reading
Finance Company & RelatedPicking up Mercury with ChopsticksSecurities Commission needs a clean outNew Zealand Financial Oversight bodies fail Blue Chip InvestorsMark Bryer's at the top of a very shaky pyramidWhatever happened to? Muriel DunnFinancial Adviser Alert: Murray WeatherstoneMoney Managers Saga: 3 Story wrapMoney Managers gives First Step investors the middle fingerGreed is bad: Geneva Finance FoldsFinancial 101: Learn before you leapKevin's BlogScam Watch: Optionetics Peter Marshall deserves longer sentenceHanover Saga
Hanover, Allied Farmers deal more of the sameHanover's "White Knights" are really daylight robbersHanover collapse: It was just a matter of timeAllied Farmers Saga
Allied Farmers: Rights Issue DecisionAllied Farmers: Prosecutions should be on the cardsAllied Farmers Fraud passes with little fanfareAllied Farmers: What's it Worth?Hanover, Allied Farmers deal more of the sameAllan Hubbard Saga
Full SFO Statement on SCF Fraud Investigation
Download Grant Thornton Report 1Download Grant Thornton Report 2Download Grant Thornton Report 3Download Grant Thornton Report 4Download Grant Thornton Report 5Join the Put Allan Hubbard Away Facebook GroupBook Review: Allan Hubbard: Man Out of Time, by Virginia GreenAllan Hubbard Saga: VIDEO - Hubbard Biographer Virginia Green on TVNZ's BreakfastBook Extract - Allan Hubbard: Man Out of TimeAllan Hubbard Saga: Going Feral - Part 3, The Final CutAllan Hubbard Saga: Going Feral - Part 2Allan Hubbard Saga: Paul Carruthers Goes Feral... AgainAllan Hubbard: The BiographyAllan Hubbard Saga: On Forged Signatures and Uncharitable TrustsAllan Hubbard Saga: Evidence of Fraud now ClearAllan Hubbard Saga: NBR VS the SFOAllan Hubbard Saga: South Canterbury Finance to be investigated by the SFOAllan Hubbard Saga: Third Grant Thornton ReportAllan Hubbard Saga: Will He Walk?Allan Hubbard Saga: No Longer Bothered by BotherwayAllan Hubbard Saga: 60 Minutes Interview, Sept 23 2010Allan Hubbard Saga: Supporters head to the exit doorAllan Hubbard Saga: Threats & the Mysterious PWC ReportAllan Hubbard Supporters: Conflict of InterestVW Veneer reveals BMW heartVIDEO: Jenni McManus Explains Allan Hubbard CollapseAllan Hubbard Statement on SCF ReceivershipVIDEO: Sandy Maier - full news conference on SCF ReceivershipMarket Alert: South Canterbury Finance to be placed in ReceivershipAllan Hubbard: Ignorant Supporters Blissfully UnawareThornton Report 2: Allan Hubbard Guilty as ChargedAllan Hubbard: Full TV3 Interview - July 16 2010Thornton Report 1: Allan Hubbard's Aorangi SecuritiesBothered by Simon BotherwayNew From Fishpond.co.nz
Allan Hubbard: Man Out of Time - By Virginia Green
c Share Investor 2010
