Ex-chief executive banned and fined £270,000 over mini-bond scheme that cost investors £4m

What happened

The Financial Conduct Authority has banned Jeffrey Dawkins, the former chief executive of Vector Wealth Ltd, and fined him nearly £270,000 after he acted as a front man for a disqualified director who used the firm to sell high-risk mini-bonds. Investors are expected to lose about £4 million in total.

According to the FCA, Mr Dawkins sold Vector Wealth in 2019 to a man who had been disqualified as a company director for 12 years in 2014. The disqualified director called himself chief executive and wanted to use Vector Wealth’s FCA authorisation to sell mini-bonds. Mr Dawkins told the regulator he remained in charge, when in reality the disqualified director was running the firm.

Who is affected

Investors who bought the mini-bonds put in £105,000 on average, with one person investing £1.1 million. Before seeing the marketing material, they had to confirm they were high net worth or sophisticated investors, but the FCA says they were not properly warned about the risks involved.

Kadir Kanizi, a former senior manager at Vector Wealth, promoted the bonds alongside the disqualified director. He has also been banned from senior management roles and was originally calculated to face a fine of £80,096. This was reduced to £20,000 after he showed it would cause serious financial hardship. The FCA has agreed not to enforce that penalty if Mr Kanizi instead makes the same amount available to Vector Wealth’s liquidators, to help maximise funds for investors. He has also agreed to complete consumer duty training before taking any future role in financial services.

Mr Dawkins has separately been ordered to repay £57,298 plus interest, totalling £68,257, representing proceeds he received from selling Vector Wealth and continuing to act as its director and approved person.

What the FCA said

Therese Chambers, the FCA’s executive director of enforcement and market oversight, said Jeffrey Dawkins “acted as a front man for a banned director, helping high-risk investments look safer than they were.” She said misleading promotions drew in investors, many of whom now face significant losses, and said mini-bonds and similar investments are very high risk.

The FCA notes that Vector Wealth was originally formed as Fifth Quarter Asset Management (UK) Limited in March 2012, with Mr Dawkins holding authorised positions from March 2013. The firm’s authorisation ended on 28 January 2025.

What happens next

Investors who bought bonds through Vector Wealth are being told to contact the firm’s liquidator and check the FCA website for updates. The regulator has permanently banned the marketing of speculative illiquid securities, including mini-bonds and loan notes, to retail investors since 1 January 2021.

The FCA is urging anyone approached about loan notes, mini-bonds or similar high-risk investments, particularly where adverts promise large, fixed returns or present the investment as simple and safe, to use its Firm Checker and Warning List before handing over money. The regulator says it may share information from its investigation with other law enforcement agencies where appropriate.