FSA clamps down on Arch following Cru funds suspension

Where are we then. No man's land

I hope there is a plan, and there is a new multi-asset team which can delivery a recovery plan in place

but why has that not been announced?

Hopefully citywire got a scoop from FSA and the replacement will be announced today

How can the FSA simply now put £350M of clients' investments into effective limbo, and not provide any reason for doing so? Cru, Arch and Capita were all crticised for the original lack of communication when these funds were suspended, and now the FSA are at it.

Have the FSA found out something about Arch that we (and the clients) should know about? Yet more fog in this debacle does not help anyone.

Before Citywire gets inundated with further unhelpful speculation from the investment community we would like to clarify the situation.

Following a request from ARCH, the FSA has temporarily restricted the firm’s permissions to carry out certain regulated activities. This includes advising on investments, arranging deals in investments, dealing in investments as agent and making arrangements with a view to transactions in investments. ARCH will, of course, continue to manage their existing investment portfolios during the suspension of their UK funds.

ARCH requested several weeks ago that the FSA take this course of action so that it can focus solely on resolving the suspension of our UK fund range. ARCH believe that this is the most responsible step it could take on behalf of all its investors.

In addition, ARCH will not establish or operate any new collective investment scheme, since the firm feels that it would not be prudent to set up new schemes while existing ones are in suspension.

We hope that the above will provide further comfort to investor about the safety of the underlying assets and that Arch is fully committed to finding a solution to the current suspension above all other business.

So if a client is unable to access his funds in a timely fashion because of this action, with no apparent plan in place to administer this, can he/she sue the FSA for any loss or distress incurred?

Arch - you did not need to ask the FSA to ask you to focus on these funds - that could have been done by you

i agree with JIM, I hope a new multi-asset team is coming in to replace ARCH ASAP

"We have asked the FSA to prevent us doing what we are paid for, so that we can focus on doing what we are paid for"

Robin, pull the other one.

a new multi-asset team needed now.

The FSA suspention had nothing to do with the £3.2 loan you gave to CRU - with fundholder's money?

Do you still portray yourself as a multi-asset firm? or have you conceded that you need someone else to manage the portfolios properly

Thanks Jim

These are the waiting times I've heard about when or i we can expect to see any of our money.

Anyone else heard?

Selwyn, if I was a client who had money in the Cru/Arch funds I think I'd sue my IFA for recommending a fund or funds which they did not understand or do specific due diligence into, other than looking at the fantasy fund management 'performance' graphs......

There were warnings about these funds from quite a few informed sources, but of course IFAs had a great story to tell re funds which had broken the old risk and reward model and always went up...what an easy sale!