Regulations

Story: CACEIS UK Pays £31.7M Over WealthTek Failures as FCA Secures £57M Total

By Dan Saada

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Where the £31.7 Million Goes. The split is straightforward. Of the £31.7 million, £30.

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WealthTek's Collapse and the Criminal Case. WealthTek wasn't always called WealthTek. The firm previously operated as Vertus Asset Management…

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A Pattern Across Multiple Institutions. It's worth stepping back to look at the full picture here.

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CACEIS UK is writing a £31.7 million check. The asset servicing bank agreed to a voluntary payment after the Financial Conduct Authority found it had left WealthTek clients…

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The FCA's intervention didn't stop at CACEIS. All told, the regulator pulled together more than £57 million in compensation for WealthTek clients, drawing money from three…

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Therese Chambers, speaking for the FCA, said robust financial crime controls are essential to keeping client assets safe.

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The split is straightforward. Of the £31.7 million, £30.9 million heads to WealthTek's administrators. The remaining £800,000 goes to the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

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Worth noting: the FCA had originally put together a £23,091,000 fine for CACEIS UK. That number didn't stick.

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CACEIS wasn't alone in facing consequences. Barclays Bank UK took a £3,093,600 fine for inadequate financial crime risk management on top of a separate £6,281,757 voluntary…

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WealthTek wasn't always called WealthTek. The firm previously operated as Vertus Asset Management LLP before rebranding, and it had been under FCA regulation since January 2020.

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More context: FCA Chief Rathi Warns AI Is Breaking the Rules 80% of Firms Already Use

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The criminal side of the story is still playing out. John Dance, WealthTek's principal partner, faces multiple charges including fraud and money laundering.

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The FCA's investigation into CACEIS UK wrapped up in 13 months. The regulator has been pushing hard to speed up its enforcement timelines, and 13 months for a case this complex…

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It's worth stepping back to look at the full picture here. Three different financial firms — CACEIS, Barclays, Sapia — all had exposure to WealthTek, and all three ended up in…

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Barclays is a major institution with serious compliance infrastructure. A £3 million-plus fine for inadequate financial crime risk management isn't something that happens because…

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