A deal to sell off failed IFA Nexus Independent Financial Advisers (FRN 584769) of Fareham, Hants, has taken far longer than expected and the sale price has been cut substantially.

Administrators say they have had to renegotiate a substantially lower sale price with new owner, Vintage Wealth Management.

Initially a deal to sell off the remainder of the Nexus business – including Nexus Independent Financial Advisers Limited and Nexus Investment Managers Limited – was agreed at £500,000.

But, as investigations have continued, the price has been cut to only £141,331. Of this a total of £14,331 was payable to Nexus Independent Financial Advisers with the balance received by the administrators.

The administrators are taking legal advice on the matter, they say.

Separately, the FSCS continues its own investigations into the South Coast business which was run by high profile founder Kerry Nelson. FSCS investigations have now been under way for 16 months.

Ms Nelson was a high profile adviser often quoted in the media and appearing on industry round tables as recently as 2022, the year before the firm failed. In that year she won the Personality of the Year Award from industry publication Money Marketing and also won two Women in Financial Advice awards in the same year from another industry title, Professional Adviser. The awards were for 'Woman of the Year - Investment' and 'Financial Adviser of the Year - South East.'

Ms Nelson was declared bankrupt in November 2023 after Nexus fell into administration following FCA action in early 2023.

In an updated administrators’ report released this week, the administrators said they were continuing their investigations into concerns over transactions which occurred prior to the administration, and it cannot provide further information at this stage.

The final payment for the sale of the Nexus firms has yet to be paid, according to the annual report from the joint administrators of the failed firms.

Nexus Independent Financial Advisers Limited and Nexus Investment Managers Limited were sold in March 2023 for a reported total of £500,000 following restrictions placed on the firm’s activities by the FCA.

According to the joint administrators of the Nexus firms, new owner Vintage Wealth Management Limited has yet to pay the full deferred part of the sale, saying that they have reasons for withholding the payment.

The administrators say they have worked with their solicitor to recover the deferred sales consideration, as well as £35,828 owed under license to occupy a leasehold premises.

During its investigations, administrator Leonard Curtis discovered an overdrawn director loan account with both firms. Due to a lack of response from the director the administrator secured a bankruptcy petition, however the administrator said, “at this stage it is uncertain what recovery may be achieved.”

The FCA stepped in at Nexus at the start of 2023 after concerns about client money irregularities at the firm totalling £2m. The FCA said it intervened because of “very serious concerns.”

The watchdog said it believed that the firms’ sole director may have deducted sums from clients without authorisation or without FCA knowledge.

In its Supervisory Notice, the FCA said it appeared that the firms’ director may have taken a total of £2.072m in unauthorised and/or inappropriate withdrawals from clients of the firms. It said the conduct appeared to relate to multiple clients and to have spanned at least the period from September 2021 to December 2022.

Carl Faulds and Nicola Layland of Leonard Curtis were appointed joint administrators of both Nexus firms by the High Court on 26 January 2023. Leonard Curtis said it was appointed as administrator as a, “result of the sole director’s absence from the business and concerns relating to the director’s conduct.”

Leonard Curtis’ administration of the Nexus firms has been extended to 25 January 2025 to allow them time to make the remaining payments to creditors, according to Companies House records.

The FCA has placed restrictions on the use of the company’s funds and assets, requiring the administrators to gain written consent from the regulator each time a payment is required either to creditors or as an expense of the administration.

New owner, Vintage Wealth Management Limited was established in 2004 after a merger between two independent financial advisory firms, Aztec Financial Limited and Bond & Stein plc.

Nexus Independent Financial Advisers was incorporated on 27 September 2007 (FRN 584769) and was authorised by the FCA to perform regulated activities from 15 November 2012.

Nexus Investment Managers Limited (FRN 610663) was incorporated on 12 August 2013 and was authorised by the authority to perform regulated activities from 14 April 2014. It is a discretionary fund manager.