London construction company liquidated by court order

Exmount Construction Limited has been wound up by the High Court and the Official Receiver has been appointed liquidator of the company.

The company produced a professional-looking brochure for potential investors, which among other false and misleading information about the company’s expertise, promised fixed returns of 9.12 per cent for 3-year bonds and 10.35 per cent on 5-year bonds.

Once victims handed over their money however, they were unable to contact the company. An Insolvency Service investigation found that between March 2018 and July 2019, around £1.1m had been received by the company from would-be investors.

However, there was no record of any money being used for actual property investments. Around £800k was identified to have been withdrawn by the company directors, or paid to other third-parties.

The directors of Exmount Construction Limited refused to co-operate with investigators or contest the winding-up petition. Judge Briggs, speaking during the winding-up hearing, concluded the company “had traded in an objectionable manner”.

Edna Okhiria, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: “Exmount Construction Limited induced investors by providing false and misleading statements in sales and marketing material to part with substantial sums of money to invest in property bonds with the promise of generous returns.

“In reality, this was a scam and we urge potential investors to carry out rigorous due diligence to ensure they use their funds on legitimate investments.”

The Official Receiver will now consider whether to take against the directors in relation to their conduct and management of the company.