Tag: Insolvency Service

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 20 May 2026.

Fraudster abused Covid support schemes and insolvency rules.

• Lucien Ekamba-Elombe set up a phoenix company while bankrupt after failing to pay his council tax and hid his involvement behind an unwitting front man
• He fraudulently claimed a £30,000 Covid Bounce Back Loan he had no right to and transferred thousands to his own account
• Ekamba-Elombe also bought two properties using more than £190,000 of company money while banned as a director by a court

A Newcastle recruitment consultant has been sentenced for a string of offences including Covid fraud, flouting director disqualifications and running a phoenix company while bankrupt.

Lucien Ekamba-Elombe set up a recruitment firm under a similar name to his previous failed company while legally banned from doing so after failing to pay council tax.

He secretly ran it through an unwitting front man to hide his involvement.

The 50-year-old then fraudulently claimed a £30,000 Covid Bounce Back Loan he had no right to apply for, transferring more than £12,000 to his own account.

He also carried on running the company even after being banned as a director by a court, helping himself to more than £190,000 of company money to buy two properties.

Ekamba-Elombe, of Union Hall Road, was sentenced to 22 months in prison, suspended for two years, when he appeared at Newcastle Crown Court on Wednesday 20 May.

He was also disqualified as a company director for seven years and ordered to complete 250 hours of unpaid work.

Ekamba-Elombe had previously pleaded guilty to the offences in October last year. A warrant was issued for his arrest after he failed to appear at court in February and he was apprehended in April.

David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

Lucien Ekamba-Elombe’s criminal actions were calculated, persistent and wide-ranging. This was a prolonged and deliberate course of offending that touched almost every aspect of insolvency law.

Ekamba-Elombe abused Covid support funds, ran a phoenix company while bankrupt and carried on as if a director ban simply did not apply to him. He even used company money to buy properties for himself.

Rooting out Covid fraudsters, cracking down on abusive phoenix companies and holding disqualified directors to account are all central to the Insolvency Service’s work – protecting honest businesses, creditors and the public from criminals such as Ekamba-Elombe who think the rules do not apply to them.

Ekamba-Elombe was the director of United Recruitment and Employment Limited, which went into liquidation in January 2019. He was made bankrupt in July that year following non-payment of council tax.

It is a criminal offence to act as a company director while bankrupt. However, Ekamba-Elombe ignored his bankruptcy and set up Unify Group Limited in September 2019.

Unify Group Limited continued trading under a similar name to its insolvent predecessor, breaching the Insolvency Act 1986, which bans directors from reusing a company name to evade creditors after insolvency.

Ekamba-Elombe concealed his involvement in the new company by appointing a nominee director who had no knowledge of the appointment.

In December 2020, Ekamba-Elombe fraudulently obtained a £30,000 Bounce Back Loan for Unify Group Limited.

By the end of the year, he had transferred more than £12,000 to his personal account across 16 transactions, with a further £8,000 paid to a company or individual in France with no known links to Unify Group Limited.

Ekamba-Elombe was disqualified as a company director for five years in January 2022 following investigations into this misconduct at United Recruitment and Employment Limited.

The disqualification prevented him from managing a company until 2027.

However, he again ignored the restrictions placed on him, continuing to act as director of Unify Group Limited, even using company funds to finance the purchase of two properties.

Insolvency Service investigations revealed that Ekamba-Elombe transferred more than £190,000 from the company to his personal account between June and October 2022.

Funds were then transferred to the solicitors who conducted the conveyancing.

The Insolvency Service is seeking to recover the fraudulently obtained funds under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

Further information

• Lucien Ekamba-Elombe is of Union Hall Road, Newcastle upon Tyne. His date of birth is 12 May 1976

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 19 May 2026.

South London director disqualified for Bounce Back Loan abuse.

• Ademilson Nascimento secured £46,500 in Bounce Back Loan funds for a construction company which never traded
• His actions were described by the judge as “bluntly appalling”, “dishonest”, and “deliberate”
• Nascimento has been banned as a company director for 15 years, the maximum period possible

A South London man who secured Covid support funds for a construction firm which never traded has been disqualified as a company director for the maximum period of 15 years.

Ademilson Nascimento obtained a £46,500 Bounce Back Loan in July 2020 by falsely claiming that his Buildan Construction Ltd company had a turnover of £192,000.

The 53-year-old also failed to use the money for the economic benefit of his business as required under the terms of the scheme, because the company never traded.

Indeed, the company filed dormant accounts for 2019, 2020 and 2021.

Nascimento, of Ridgemount Close, was disqualified as a company director for 15 years at a hearing of the High Court in London on Tuesday 28 April.

His ban started on Tuesday 19 May.

He was also ordered to pay costs of £5,667.

Simon Gillett, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

Ademilson Nascimento’s conduct was described by the judge as ‘bluntly appalling’ and it’s clear to see why.

His selfish actions caused real harm to the public purse and showed utter contempt for a scheme designed to support genuine businesses during the pandemic.

The Insolvency Service will not tolerate those who abuse their position as a company director, as this lengthy disqualification demonstrates.

Nascimento’s disqualification runs through until May 2041 and prevents him from being involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court.

Buildan Construction Ltd went into liquidation in April 2023 and was dissolved in December 2025.

Further information

• Ademilson Nascimento is of Ridgemount Close, London. His date of birth is 9 July 1972

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 18 May 2026.

• Philip Walker used the Atherton scheme to walk away from more than half a million pounds of debt owed by his cleaning company
• He made net payments of almost £200,000 from his insolvent business into a new company he controlled, knowing Solus Facilities Limited could not pay its creditors
• Walker has been disqualified as a company director for seven years following Insolvency Service investigations into users of the scheme

A cleaning boss has been banned as a company director after transferring almost £200,000 out of his insolvent business into his new company.

Leicestershire-based Philip Walker was the director of Solus Facilities Limited, a company providing cleaning services for restaurants.

However, by April 2023, the company was in financial difficulty, and unable to pay its debts.

Instead of following standard insolvency procedures, the 44-year-old used the Atherton scheme to avoid paying his debts, leaving creditors more than half a million pounds out of pocket.

Atherton was advertised as a corporate rescue service where directors of distressed companies were encouraged to sell their businesses as an “alternative” to entering formal insolvency proceedings such as liquidation.

Walker paid Atherton Corporate (UK) Ltd £16,500 in three instalments across the summer of 2023 for it to purchase Solus Facilities Limited’s liabilities.

During this period, Walker also set up a new phoenix company, Carbon White Group Ltd, of which he was director.

Solus Facilities Limited did not trade after Walker resigned as director and was replaced by Karen Mortimer, one of Atherton’s main enablers, in December 2023.

Despite this, Walker accessed the company’s account, making net payments of £198,100 to Carbon White Group Ltd between November 2023 and January 2024 when he knew that Solus Facilities Limited was insolvent.

Solus Facilities Limited went into liquidation in September 2024 owing creditors £513,090.

Walker, of Wykes Close, Quorn, has been disqualified as a company director for seven years.

Dave Magrath, Director of Investigation and Enforcement Services at the Insolvency Service, said:

Philip Walker made payments to his new company when he knew his former business had no reasonable prospect of avoiding liquidation, leaving creditors seriously out of pocket.

Indeed, many of these transfers were made when Walker had resigned as a director of Solus Facilities Limited yet was still accessing the company’s bank account.

These actions are deeply damaging to creditors and are completely unacceptable. Those who deliberately use companies repeatedly to avoid debts – known as abusive phoenixism – should be in no doubt that we will pursue them using all the enforcement tools at our disposal.

Mortimer, 67, was disqualified as a company director for seven years having put the creditors of 138 companies at risk of financial loss after taking control of businesses referred to her by Atherton Corporate UK (Ltd) and Atherton Corporate Rescue Limited.

Her sister Joanna Seawright, 55, also received a seven-year ban for her role in the Atherton scheme.

Atherton enabler Neville Taylor, 59, was disqualified as a company director for nine years in January 2025.

Suzanne Harley-Davies, 68, who failed to ensure her Atherton-linked companies operated for legitimate corporate purposes, was banned for four years in May this year.

Atherton Corporate (UK) Ltd and Atherton Corporate Rescue Limited, along with five companies which enabled the running of the scheme, were wound-up in the public interest in the summer of 2024.

Four more companies which formed part of the Atherton scheme – Atherton Corporate Partners LLP, Jones & Harlington Ltd, TYA GRP Ltd and TYA Two GRP Ltd – went into compulsory liquidation in early 2026 after Insolvency Service investigations.

Criminal investigations into the Atherton scheme remain ongoing. Six search warrants have been executed across the UK in the last three months with the support of the police.

The Secretary of State for Business and Trade accepted a disqualification undertaking from Walker, and his ban started on Friday 15 May.

It prevents him from being involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court.

Further information

• Philip Walker is of Wykes Close, Quorn, Leicestershire. His date of birth is 10 November 1981
• Solus Facilities Limited (company number 09796369)

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 13 May 2026.

Director made false declarations on two separate government-backed loan applications.

• Harjinder Singh legitimately secured a £20,000 Bounce Back Loan in May 2020 before fraudulently obtaining a second £30,000 loan the following month
• He failed to declare the fraudulent second loan when applying for a £95,000 Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan later that year
• Singh was handed a suspended sentence and director disqualification after Insolvency Service investigations into his fraudulent actions

A West Midlands property developer and lettings agent has been sentenced after fraudulently obtaining two separate Covid support loans designed to help businesses through the pandemic.

Harjinder Singh had already claimed a legitimate £20,000 Bounce Back Loan for HP Property (International) Ltd in May 2020 when he went back for more the following month.

The 44-year-old lied to a second bank, falsely declaring it was his first application, and secured a £30,000 Bounce Back Loan he was not entitled to.

He then failed to declare the £30,000 loan when he applied for a £95,000 Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan later that year.

Singh, of Stonnall Road, Aldridge, was sentenced to 22 months in prison, suspended for two years, when he appeared at Birmingham Crown Court on Tuesday 12 May.

He was also disqualified as a company director for seven years, ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work, and 20 days of rehabilitation activities.

David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

Harjinder Singh exploited Covid support schemes that were created in good faith to help businesses survive one of the most difficult periods in recent memory.

He made deliberate false declarations across two separate applications to keep money he had no right to.

The Insolvency Service remains committed to ensuring that Covid fraudsters face the consequences of their actions.

HP Property (International) Ltd was set up in January 2016 and traded as a residential property developer and letting agent.

In an interview with the Insolvency Service, Singh acknowledged the application for a £30,000 Bounce Back Loan broke the rules of the scheme, admitting he had not read the terms and conditions and saying “we just clicked it”.

Singh’s application for a Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan – a separate government-backed scheme to help small and medium-sized businesses safeguard against lost revenues and disrupted cashflow during the pandemic – was made in October 2020.

Under the scheme’s rules, any outstanding Bounce Back Loan had to be repaid using the new funding, meaning Singh was legally required to disclose it.

He disclosed the first £20,000 Bounce Back Loan which was duly repaid as the scheme required, but failed to declare the fraudulent £30,000, allowing him to keep the money.

HP Property (International) Ltd went into compulsory liquidation in November 2021 after the lender of the business interruption loan went to court to recover the money it was owed.

The Insolvency Service is seeking to recover the fraudulently obtained funds under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

Further information

• Harjinder Singh is of Stonnall Road, Aldridge, West Midlands. His date of birth is 4 January 1982
• HP Property (International) Ltd (company number 09943518)

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 11 December 2025.

• Derby-based Temidola Ojelabi illegally obtained £80,000 in Covid support by making two separate Bounce Back Loan applications 
• Funds were spent on share dealing platforms instead of supporting his business through the pandemic 
• The 43-year-old has been jailed and banned as a company director following investigations by the Insolvency Service

A Derby businessman who used Covid support scheme funds on online trading platforms has been jailed. 

Temidola Ojelabi secured £80,000 across two Bounce Back Loan applications for Platinum Gates Limited in 2020 when businesses were only entitled to a single loan. 

Money from the loans was then used on online trading platforms when it should have been spent supporting his business. 

Ojelabi, 43, of Glossop Street, Derby, was sentenced to two years and four months in prison at Derby Crown Court on Wednesday 10 December. 

He was also disqualified as a company director for eight years. 

David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: 

Temidola Ojelabi exploited a scheme designed to support small and medium-sized businesses through the pandemic, securing two Bounce Back Loans when you were only allowed one. 

Two different turnover figures were given on each application, and the funds were not used for the economic benefit of his business – a fundamental requirement of the scheme. Instead, money was spent on online trading platforms. 

Ojelabi’s actions showed a complete disregard for taxpayer money and the rules designed to support legitimate businesses.

Platinum Gates Limited was set up in October 2018 with Ojelabi as its sole director. Ojelabi said the company was an e-commerce venture and would buy and sell goods from various warehouse premises. 

In May 2020, Ojelabi secured £35,000 in Bounce Back Loan funds for the company after declaring its turnover was £150,000. 

Within one week, £34,000 of the funds were transferred to his personal bank account. 

Later the same month, £29,800 was moved from his personal account to a share dealing service. 

Ojelabi made a second Bounce Back Loan application in June 2020, this time applying for £45,000 and claiming his company’s turnover was £180,000. 

All the money was transferred to Ojelabi’s personal account within eight days. 

In interviews, Ojelabi accepted he took out the Bounce Back Loans but denied this was done fraudulently. 

Platinum Gates Limited entered liquidation in May 2021, with both loans unpaid. 

The Insolvency Service is seeking to recover the fraudulently obtained funds under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 9 October 2025.

• Haralambos Ioannou fraudulently applied for two separate Bounce Back Loans worth a total of £100,000 for Opti-Bond (GB) Ltd 
• He spent large amounts of one loan on gambling, crypto investments, cash withdrawals and payments to his then wife  
• The 49-year-old received a suspended sentence of 22-months in custody with 150 hours of unpaid work to be completed

The boss of a glazing firm who fraudulently applied for two Covid Bounce Back loans and spent significant sums on gambling and crypto investments has received a sentence of 22 months in custody, suspended for two years. 

Just months into the pandemic, Haralombos Ioannou secured two maximum-value £50,000 Bounce Back Loans when businesses were only allowed one.   

The 49-year-old used the first loan legitimately for his glass-fitting company, Opti-Bond (GB) Ltd.  

However, money from the second loan was used for personal purposes, breaking the rules of the scheme. 

Ioannou, of Cow Lane, Edlesborough, Buckinghamshire, but previously of South London, was given a 22-month suspended sentence at Southwark Crown Court on Tuesday 7 October. 

Ioannou was also disqualified as a company director for five years and ordered to pay £40,000 in compensation as well as complete 150 hours of unpaid work.

David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

Haralambos Ioannou exploited the Bounce Back Loan Scheme by fraudulently applying for a second Bounce Back Loan when companies could apply for one loan of up to £50,000 for support during the Covid-19 pandemic. 

He not only fraudulently applied for a second loan but then spent it on activities which had nothing to do with his company’s operations such as gambling, crypto-investments, cash withdrawals and payments to his then partner. 

The Insolvency Service remains committed to taking robust action against those who abused the Bounce Back Loan Scheme. Government-backed schemes were a lifeline for businesses during the pandemic, and we will continue to pursue those who deliberately  exploited this support at the taxpayers’ expense.

Ioannou was the sole director of Opti-Bond (GB) Ltd, which was set up in October 2019. 

The 49-year-old submitted an application for a first loan of £50,000 in May 2020, stating his company’s 2019 turnover was £216,000. 

He then submitted an application for a second loan of £50,000, but this time declared Opti-Bond’s turnover in 2019 was £236,000. 

Ioannou received the £100,000 within an eight-day period between late June and early July 2020. 

After receiving the second loan, Ioannou made 38 transactions totalling almost £20,000 to his personal account. 

In the same period, around £25,000 of payments were made to gambling companies from this personal account. 

Aside from gambling, approximately £8,000 of the second loan was transferred to investment and crypto-investment companies. 

Almost £6,000 of the loan was withdrawn from ATM machines, whilst a further £16,000 of this loan was also transferred to an account in the name of Ioannou’s now ex-wife. 

Opti-Bond (GB) Ltd entered liquidation in November 2021 but Ioannou failed to inform the liquidator of the company’s first Bounce Back Loan as he was legally required to do.

Further information

• Haralambos Ioannou is of Cow Lane, Edlesborough. His date of birth is 21 June 1976. 
• Opti-Bond (GB) Ltd (company number 08716051) 

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 18 August 2025.

Companies wound-up by the High Court following Insolvency Service investigations.

• EDC Group NE Ltd, UK EDC Ltd and UK TCF Limited have been shut down by the High Court after keeping more than £50,000 in funds they collected on behalf of clients
• The three companies falsely claimed decades of experience despite being recently established, and used fake testimonials and misleading websites to deceive small businesses into paying upfront fees
• Clients paid fees of hundreds of pounds but received no service, with the companies becoming uncontactable while bank records showed payments were made to the director, bookmakers and football clubs

Three connected debt collection companies which kept more than £50,000 in client funds they collected on their behalf have been shut down.

Sunderland-based EDC Group NE Ltd, UK EDC Ltd and UK TCF Limited falsely presented themselves as professional agencies with decades of experience while taking money from both clients and their debtors.

The companies targeted small businesses through unsolicited phone calls, using misleading information to convince them to sign contracts for debt collection services.

Victims reported paying instruction fees and then being unable to contact the companies, despite assurances that collected funds would be safeguarded.

At least £54,847 in funds was collected and retained by the companies without being passed back to their clients.

The three companies were all wound-up at the High Court in Manchester on Friday 15 August.

David Hope, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

These companies systematically deceived their clients by presenting themselves as professional debt collection agencies when they were nothing more than operations designed to take money from clients.

The victims trusted these companies to collect debts on their behalf but instead found themselves unable to contact anyone after paying upfront fees, while money that was collected was kept by the companies.

We will continue to take robust action against those who prey on both creditors seeking legitimate debt recovery services and debtors who believe they are making payments to settle their obligations.

All three companies falsely claimed to have “been collecting unpaid debts, resolving disputes and carrying out investigations and research for more than 25 years.”

EDC Group NE Ltd was only set up in March 2022, with UK EDC Ltd incorporated in August 2023, and UK TCF Limited in December 2023.

The companies operated using nearly identical websites, with UK EDC and UK TCF sharing the same website.

False claims on the websites included descriptions of the companies as “market leaders” with “cutting edge collection activity technology” and 65 positive testimonials which presented an inaccurate picture of the companies as having a successful track record in debt recovery.

Insolvency Service investigations revealed sophisticated deceptive tactics, with the companies operating interchangeably to maximise their improper conduct.

One victim paid £750 to UK EDC Ltd for collection of a debt of more than £20,000 but when the debtor made a payment of £12,143 it was collected by the connected company UK TCF Limited operating as ‘The Creditor’s Friend’. The victim was never informed of this collection and never received any of the money recovered on his behalf.

In another example, a woman who paid £600 to recover £15,000 in debts described how EDC Group NE Ltd claimed to have quickly found the debtors’ addresses and new business locations, even boasting of posing as a tax officer to obtain information.

She said: “They gained my trust and gave me false hope. I see now that this was all a confidence trick to gain my trust and impress me so that I would willingly part with my money.”

Complaints to Action Fraud saw one business owner report that the companies had taken payments estimated at £30,000 – £50,000 from his clients alone.

Other victims reported paying instruction fees ranging from £350 to £750 before the companies became completely uncontactable, with phone lines permanently engaged and no voicemail facilities.

Analysis of EDC Group NE Ltd’s bank account revealed that of the £347,837 in total payments out, almost £160,000 went directly to the director, with an additional £78,071 paid to various individuals as salary, gifts and commissions.

Investigators also found payments of more than £17,000 to various bookmakers, £9,679 to football clubs, and £21,362 to hostelries, hotels, restaurants and supermarkets.

No payments to clients for debts collected on their behalf were found.

Bank accounts for the other two companies showed similar patterns, including unexplained payments to EDC Group NE Ltd.

All three companies failed to provide any accounting or financial records to the Insolvency Service. The registered company director failed to co-operate throughout the investigation, ignoring all attempts by investigators to locate and communicate with the companies and those in control of them.

The failure to provide financial records also prevented investigators from establishing whether the companies operated independently or used phoenix practices – repeatedly closing and reopening under new names to evade responsibility and confuse clients.

The Official Receiver has been appointed as liquidator of EDC Group NE Ltd, UK EDC Ltd and UK TCF Limited.

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 12 August 2025.

The company entered administration owing more than £3 million.

• David Smith submitted false VAT returns on behalf of long-established Scottish machinery firm Balgownie Limited across a three-year period
• In total, more than £1.5 million was undeclared to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) between 2019 and 2022
• Smith has been banned as a director for 11 years and the company was bought out of administration by another firm last year, with 15 jobs saved

The director of a century-old Scottish machinery firm which went into administration last year has been banned after failing to declare more than £1.5 million in VAT.

David Smith, 61, was the director of FB Realisations Limited, which was known for decades as Balgownie Limited.

However, for more than three years between 2019 and 2022, Smith submitted false VAT returns on behalf of the company in his role as finance director without the knowledge of his fellow directors.

Smith, of Kirkton of Bourtie, Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, has been disqualified as a company director for 11 years following investigations by the Insolvency Service.

Mike Smith, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

David Smith’s conduct falls well below the standards we expect of company directors.

Smith’s misconduct was hidden from his other directors and only came to light when a consultant queried finances at a board meeting and he admitted that he had been manipulating the accounts for several years.

By deliberately suppressing VAT payments, Smith deprived the public purse of vital funds that should have gone towards essential public services such as schools and the NHS.

Balgownie Limited was set up on Companies House in 1973 but had a trading history dating back to 1907.

The undeclared VAT totalling £1,575,584 consisted of:

• Falsely claiming VAT refunds on expenses that were actually for private or personal use rather than legitimate business purposes in the quarter ending December 2018
• Deliberately understating the amount of tax due on sales made between March 2019 and March 2022, across multiple quarterly returns
• Falsely claiming refunds by backdating purchases to earlier tax periods without having valid invoices or evidence to support these claims

Smith signed a disclosure with HMRC in March 2023 where he admitted deliberately under-declaring the amount of VAT his company should have paid.

Balgownie Limited went into administration in March 2024, with 24 people losing their jobs and creditors owed £3,163,795.

However, 15 jobs were saved when the business and its assets were bought out of administration by another company the following month.

The Secretary of State for Business and Trade accepted a disqualification undertaking from Smith, and his ban started on Monday 21 July.

It prevents him from being involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court.

Smith was declared bankrupt in August 2024 following a petition from one of the company’s creditors.

Further information

• David Smith is of Kirkton of Bourtie, Inverurie, Aberdeenshire. His date of birth is 17 May 1964
• FB Realisations Limited (company number SC053574)

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 5 August 2025.

The director sold at least £1.5 million of company assets in total.

• Kulbarg Singh has been banned as a director after selling £1.5 million worth of assets for under £500,000 to another company which he also controlled
• The sales in 2021 included seven historic cars – including three Rolls Royces
• Singh’s disqualification means he cannot direct any company until 2031

A Staffordshire businessman who sold seven historic cars including two Jaguars and three Rolls-Royces for just £1 to another company he also controlled has been banned as a director.

Kulbarg Singh, 62, was the director of Aldridge Construction Engineering Ltd when he entered into an asset purchase agreement with Ace Earth Solutions Ltd in 2021.

At least £1.5 million of company assets were sold, with Aldridge Construction Engineering Ltd entering liquidation the following year.

Among the under-priced sales were two Daimlers from 1936 and 1965; Jaguars from 1969 and 1978; and three Rolls Royces from the 1970s.

Combined, the seven cars had a value of £101,500 but Singh sold them to Ace Earth Solutions Ltd for just £1.

Singh, of Haselour Lane, Harlaston, Tamworth, has been disqualified as a director for six years following Insolvency Service investigations.

Kevin Read, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

Kulbarg Singh deliberately sold assets worth £1.5 million for much less than they were worth, putting the money out of the reach of creditors.

Directors who abuse their position will face serious consequences. Selling historic cars worth over £100,000 for just £1 shows the extent of Singh’s misconduct.

Singh’s six-year disqualification sends a clear message that we will pursue those who breach their responsibilities as a director.

Aldridge Construction Engineering Ltd was set up in November 2015. Singh said the company was involved in the resurfacing of roads and later installing gas pipes.

In April 2021, Singh sold company assets worth at least £1.5 million for just more than £465,000 to Ace Earth Solutions Ltd, a company he was director of between February 2020 and April 2022.

The sale resulted in Aldridge Construction Engineering Ltd losing more than £1 million, leaving it insolvent.

By the time the company went into liquidation in June 2022, it had no assets and total liabilities to HM Revenue and Customs and other companies of more than £1.5 million.

The Official Receiver, as liquidator of Aldridge Construction Engineering Ltd, is currently exploring options to pursue recovery action to return money to creditors who lost out as a result of the sales.

The Secretary of State for Business and Trade accepted a disqualification undertaking from Singh, and his ban started on Thursday 24 July.

It prevents him from being involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court.

Further information

• Kulbarg Singh is of Haselour Lane, Harlaston, Tamworth, Staffordshire. His date of birth is 13 July 1963

The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 23 July 2025.

Athlete sentenced for Bounce Back Loan fraud.

• British Masters athlete Rick Beardsell obtained two maximum-value Bounce Back Loans for his sportswear manufacturing business and used most of the funds to help buy a £1.3 million home in a Cheshire village
• Money spent on purchasing the five-bedroom house should have been used to benefit his Sports Creative Limited business
• Beardsell also broke the rules of the scheme by substantially inflating his company’s turnover and securing two loans when businesses should only have received one
• The 46-year-old has now repaid the £100,000 he fraudulently applied for in full

A world sprint champion has been sentenced after he spent Covid loan funds to help buy a £1.3 million house.

Rick Beardsell secured two £50,000 Bounce Back Loans for his Sports Creative Limited company in 2020 and 2021 when businesses were only allowed a single loan.

The 46-year-old then moved the Bounce Back Loan funds into his personal bank account, using part of the money to help buy a five-bedroom property on Macclesfield Road in Prestbury, while also transferring cash to family members and making mortgage payments.

Beardsell, who has won multiple sprint titles and holds world records representing Great Britain as a masters athlete, was sentenced to 18 months in prison, suspended for two years, when he appeared at Chester Crown Court on Tuesday 22 July.

He was also ordered to complete 250 hours of unpaid work and pay costs of £11,152.

Beardsell repaid the £100,000 in full earlier this year after his guilty plea but before sentencing.

David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

Rick Beardsell exploited a Covid support scheme designed for struggling businesses, fraudulently obtaining loans he was not entitled to.

While legitimate business owners fought to stay afloat during the pandemic, Beardsell bought a £1.3 million home with the help of money that should have been supporting his company through difficult times.

This case sends a clear message that we will not tolerate those who viewed government support schemes as an opportunity for personal enrichment during a national emergency.

Sports Creative Limited was set up in January 2009 with Beardsell as its sole director. The company described itself on social media as “a bespoke sportswear manufacturer”.

Beardsell applied to the bank for his first £50,000 Bounce Back Loan just before Christmas 2020.

In the application, he claimed that Sports Creative Limited had a turnover of £485,000.

Just two weeks later, in early January 2021, Beardsell applied to a second bank for another £50,000 Bounce Back Loan, this time stating that his company had an estimated turnover of £320,000.

Insolvency Service analysis of Sports Creative Limited’s bank account revealed that its turnover was just over £90,000, meaning he exaggerated his company’s revenue on both occasions.

Beardsell claimed that he had received a purchase order of $600,000 (approximately £440,000) for personal protective equipment during the pandemic which ultimately failed to materialise.

Even if this were the case, businesses were required to provide their turnover for 2019, prior to the start of Covid.

Investigations also found Beardsell transferred £83,900 of the £100,000 loan money to his personal bank account in three separate transactions at the start of March 2021.

A total of £431,160 from that account was paid to solicitors for the purchase of a house on Macclesfield Road in September 2021.

Beardsell also made fraudulent transfers of £5,000 to his wife, £10,000 to another family member, and two mortgage payments for his previous house in Manchester which put the funds beyond the reach of creditors.

In a prepared statement, Beardsell claimed that he had sought “professional advice” that Bounce Back Loan funds could be used for “any purpose” that resulted in a direct benefit to the company. He added that he was advised that this could include investments in company assets or property.

Beardsell also said that HMRC told him that he was eligible to receive the funds from the second loan, advice which would not have been given had he been honest about his successful application for an earlier Bounce Back Loan.

Sports Creative Limited entered liquidation in December 2021.

Further information

• Rick Beardsell is of Macclesfield Road, Prestbury, Cheshire. His date of birth is 19 January 1979