Former fund manager Woodford facing ban and £46m fine

The City watchdog has provisionally banned erstwhile prima money manager Neil Woodford and fined him and his erstwhile money institution astir £46m.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said it planned to forestall Mr Woodford from holding elder manager roles and managing funds.

The watchdog besides aimed to good him £5.89m and Woodford Investment Management (WIM) £40m related to its illness successful 2019.

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Mr Woodford's flagship fund, Woodford Equity Income, was coiled down aft investors tried to retreat currency faster than the money could wage out, amid concerns implicit its precocious vulnerability to illiquid and unquoted shares.

The FCA determined that Mr Woodford and the money "made unreasonable and inappropriate concern decisions" betwixt July 2018 and June 2019.

Steve Smart, its associated enforcement manager of enforcement and marketplace oversight, said: "Being a person successful fiscal services comes with responsibilities arsenic good arsenic profile. Mr Woodford simply doesn't judge helium had immoderate relation successful managing the liquidity of the fund.

"The precise minimum investors should expect is those managing their wealth marque sensible decisions and instrumentality their elder relation seriously.

"Neither Neil Woodford nor Woodford Investment Management did so, putting astatine hazard the wealth radical had entrusted them with."

Both Mr Woodford and WIM person referred the lawsuit to the Upper Tribunal for appeal.

He was yet to comment.

Mr Woodford was erstwhile considered the prima banal picker of his generation.

He launched his ain concern concern aft gathering up a estimation for delivering stellar returns portion astatine Invesco Perpetual.

At its tallness successful 2017, the Woodford Equity Income Fund had a worth of implicit £10bn but by the clip of its suspension successful June 2019 this had reportedly sunk to arsenic debased arsenic £3.7bn.