FSA fines former JC Flowers boss £3m
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined the financier Ravi Shankar Sinha almost £3m for a false invoicing scheme while he was in charge of the UK operations of private equity firm JC Flowers.
The financial services watchdog demanded that Sinha, one of JC Flowers’ leading dealmakers who had led attempts to buy Northern Rock and Friends Provident, repay the £1.38m he had pocketed fraudulently.
The FSA also levied a punitive fine of £1.5m and a ban on the former Goldman Sachs banker working within the financial services industry.
Sinha’s financial position deteriorated from 2007 onwards and he HAD borrowed heavily to finance investments whose performance declined, leaving him unable to service his debts.
In response to his deteriorating financial position, between 17 February and 26 October 2009 Sinha issued invoices to a company, in which the JCF Funds had invested, for fees payable to himself, to which he knew he was not entitled.
According to the FSA Sinha deliberately misled the company’s CEO by claiming that the payments had been authorised and approved by JCFUK, when in fact no such authorisation or approval had been sought or given.
Tracey McDermott, acting director of enforcement and financial crime, said: “Sinha exploited his position of trust as CEO to fraudulently obtain significant sums for his personal benefit. He engaged in a dishonest, deliberate and sustained course of misconduct which lasted for several months. Such behaviour has no place in the financial services industry.”