In February the FCA restricted business at the firm after it failed to pay a £70,000 Ombudsman award to a client.

The Official Receiver was yesterday appointed as liquidator of the firm which is based in Walton-on-Thames in Surrey.

It will wind up IEL for the benefit of its creditors and will be writing to all known creditors shortly to explain what that means and how to make a claim.

The regulator said it acted due to the failure of IEL to pay the Ombudsman award, concern about a lack of resources at IEL and failure of the firm to engage with the FCA in an “open and co-operative” way.

It said there was evidence that at least some of a client’s money, which should have been paid into a bond, was instead transferred into a personal account of a director.

Before that the FCA had placed a number of restrictions on the firm, including freezing its bank accounts and cancelling its permissions to carry out regulated activities.

Explaining its decision to order the compulsory liquidation of the firm, the FCA said: ”Following the issuing of the First Supervisory Notice to the firm on 13 February 2023, we remained concerned that the firm was not able to meet its debts as they fell due.

“We are also concerned about the ability of IEL to comply with their regulatory requirements, their overall cooperation with the FCA and have concerns over how they have used consumer funds. In order to protect consumers we have taken action to place IEL into liquidation.”

The FCA added: “IEL did not have permission to hold client money. Furthermore, in some instances we found no evidence to suggest that the money transferred by consumers to IEL was invested in a bond or any other form of investment.”

The company had been based at an address at Robin Hood Lane in Kingston SW15 but, according to Companies House, moved its registered office to Walton on Thames in Surrey on 11 December 2020.

Anyone with a claim against IEL should contact the Official Receiver’s Office, Public Interest Unit, PO Box 16664, Birmingham, B2 2JQ. Tel: 0300 6780 015.