Source: https://www.guernseylegalresources.gg/CHttpHandler.ashx?documentid=86143
This is an appeal brought by the Appellant, Nicholas Walton Hofgren (Mr “Hofgren”), against a Decision of the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (“the Commission”) made on 16 November 2022 through Dr Kirsty Hood KC as its appointed Senior Decision Maker (“the SDM”). The Decision is contained in a document headed “Final Notice” which has an Appendix of Reasons attached, but it is convenient to refer to it compositely as “the Decision” for clarity and brevity.
The FX Cell was set up with the objective of investing in foreign exchange, but in 2015, its Scheme particulars were amended to allow it to make investments secured by diamonds. In April 2016 it embarked on a transaction to lend money to a company incorporated in Dubai (“DXD”) to enable it to purchase diamonds from another company (“PEL”) owned by a Mr Ismail Ahmed (“Mr Ismail” – sometimes erroneously referred to in the Decision as Ismail Ahmad), on the basis that FX Cell would have security for its loan over the diamonds themselves. The SDM’s findings as to Mr Hofgren’s part in the conduct of this transaction found, in part the imposition of the sanctions which he challenges, having given rise to findings that Mr Hofgren there showed a lack of competence and soundness of judgment and were lacking in probity in a number of ways.
The SDM found that Mr Hogren’s part in setting up these loans demonstrated a lack of
competence and soundness of judgment in a number of ways, in particular his failure to
ensure that the security taken was effective.
