Gleeson Bessent: Insolvency Services shuts down TWO pension trustee firms following investigation

Gleeson Bessent Trustee Services and Gleeson Bessent Trustees offered high-risk investments to ordinary investments as part of their pension schemes.

Following an investigation by the Insolvency Service, the High Court has wound-up two pension trustees which administrated over 9 different pension schemes, all of which were occupational, including Focusplay Retirement Benefit Scheme, as well as PSP. Retirement Benefit Scheme.

These pension funds were found to have “breached a number of rules”, including (as reported in FT Adviser) lending money back from the schemes to the “sponsoring employer”.

High-risk investments

Despite being charged an initial fee sometimes as high as £1,645, and ongoing management fees up to £2,500 which generated over £3.5 MILLION in fees for the firms, pension scheme owners had their money invested high-risk investments.

Organic Investment Management DFM

While acting as an accountant, Roger Bessent of Gleeson Bessent – a different company to the two other trustees but with Roger as director, Roger audited Organic Investment Management – a discretionary fund management firm that has now had restrictions place on its business, and been asked to re-submit it’s accounts after it was revealed that Roger had shareholdings with Organic.