The Fraud Facilitators - without whose help Columna's money would never have been lost!
Sometimes financial entities expose a fund to fraud possibilities without being the direct beneficiary. Their actions create the opportunity for fraud, and then of course actively engage in cover up when the fraud is committed.
#1 - CSSF, the Luxembourg financial regulator
- Married Apex (the fund administrator) to Luxembourg Fund Partners, thus created the conflict of interest in NAV calculations.
- Granted a newbie fund an unusual 3 years carte-blanche re. non-diversification. After the first 3 years ending December 201majority of investments were still siphoned through Stephens/McGrath-controlled World Accord Ltd. in Hong Kong, in breach of the 30% diversification rule of the CSSF. PWC never "looked through" the SMB accounts to discover the catastrophic losses.
- Refused to force a regulated entity, SocGen, to provide historic bank statements, thus abetting the covering up of fraud and money laundering.
- Refused to force a regulated entity, Alter Domus Management, to provide historic fund documents, thus abetting the covering up of fraud and misdealings.
- Refused to provide the investigating director with the previous directors' replies to CSSSF enquiries into lack of diversification, use of HK companies etc..
- Ignored shareholder complaints and requests for help, citing that as "Well-informed Investors" under the SIF Law, basically "tough luck!!" - notwithstanding the widescale fraud that had occurred under their watchful eye..
#2 - PWC, the Luxembourg Auditor
- Was aware from April 2013 that Apex owned 18% of Luxembourg Fund Partners, yet never once alerted investors to this clear conflict of interest in the annual reports.
- PWC never "looked through" the London-based SMB Professional Services accounts for World Accord, thus overlooked the catastrophic losses - 25% in 2014, 31% in 2016./li>
- Signed off annual audited accounts showing yearly successes of Blackstar Commodities, thus deceiving investors.
- In 2017 accounts PWC stated 3 years of positive NAV returns for each share class, even though the fund had suspended then collapsed in May 2017.
#3a - SMB Professional Services Ltd., UK-Based internal management accountant to HK-based World Accord Ltd. from March 2015 to September 2016
- Managed the accounts for World Accord up to the suspension of Blackstar Commodities.
- Raised many questions with management of World Accord, unanswered.
- Aware of funds owed from an iron ore deal.
#3b - Matthew S.H. Law & Co., HK-Based auditor to HK-based World Accord Ltd.
- Produced audited accounts for World Accord up to the suspension of Blackstar Commodities.
- Confirmed by Hong Kong Institute of CPA's that Matthew S.H. Law & Co. was never registered as an audit firm.
- Presumably these audited accounts were then provided to PWC Luxembpurg
- Matthew Law, Australian-qualified CPA.
#4 - Luxembourg Fund Partners, the fund manager
- Effectively an Organised Financial Crime Group, operating at least 4 Ponzi schemes in LFP I, plus similar losses in LFP Prme, and Alliance Omnibus Property
- Primarily owned by LFP directors Luc Leleux and Julien Renaux, then 18% shareholder Apex from April 2013.
- Shared 2 directors, and same office floor with Apex at 11 Boulevard de la Foire in Luxembourg, zero independence of administrator and investment manager.
- Ceded lack of transparency to 100% subsdiary World Accord Ltd. in Hong Kong, to conceal catastrophic investment losses from Luxembourg and investors,
and used to breach investment diversification rules in defiance of CSSF investment rules.
- Lost 25% of NAV in 2014, hidden from Blackstar investors.
- Lost 31% of NAV in 2016, hidden from Blackstar investors.
- Invested in related party companies of Stephens and McGrath in 2026/17 just before Blackstar Commodities fund collapsed in May 2017.
- Luxembourg Fund Partners was sold to Alter Domus Group at end of 2017
- Alter Domus refused to hand over historic fund documents to investigating new director David Mapley in December 2018, sued in Luxembourg courts, case still not resolved as at November 2023!!
#5 - LFP I Directors, Luc Leleux, Julien Renaux
- Architects of the entire LFP Organised Financial Crime Group, with LFP I, LFP Prime, and Alliance Omnibus Property group of funds.
- Also controlling directors of investment manager Luxembourg Fund Partners.
- Also directors of investment subsidiary World Accord Ltd. in Hong Kong, which concealed catastrophic investment losses.
#6 - Apex Fund Services Malta, the fund administrator
- Apex owned 18% of Luxembourg Fund Partners, from April 2013 - an undisclosed conflict of interest re monthly NAV share price calculation.
- Apex provided a managing director to Luxembourg Fund Partners, Christophe Lentschat, involved in the day-to-day running of Blackstar.
- Apex provided a second director to Luxembourg Fund Partners, Peter Hughes, the global CEO of Apex Group
- Strangely, Apex operated in Luxembourg through the branch of Apex Malta, which somehow failed to raise any suspicions.
- The CSSF arranged the Apex shareholding and management involvment in Luxembourg Fund Partners in order to grant Luxembourg Fund Partners a funds management licence.
- Christophe Lentschat resigned as managing director of Luxembourg Fund Partners in January 2016, Peter Hughes resigns as director in December 2016.
