Caceis UK, an asset servicing bank, will pay £31.7 million ($42 million) to clients of the failed British wealth manager WealthTek. This significant contribution brings the total funds secured by Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to £57 million, following its investigations into WealthTek’s collapse. The financial markets watchdog censured Caceis UK for its failings, marking the third enforcement action related to WealthTek since its demise in 2023.
The censure stemmed from Caceis UK’s failure to act on critical information that exposed clients to financial crime risks after it became WealthTek’s sub-custodian in November 2020. The FCA found Caceis UK did not adequately respond after identifying that WealthTek was unauthorised to hold certain client assets and money, yet still opened and subsequently failed to properly monitor client accounts for the firm. Despite these findings, the FCA did not impose a fine, acknowledging Caceis UK’s voluntary payment and extensive co-operation during the 13-month investigation. Caceis stated it remains committed to fraud prevention and treating customers fairly, having reviewed its procedures.
This payment follows previous enforcement actions by the FCA regarding the WealthTek situation. Last July, Barclays was fined over £3 million for poor handling of financial crime risks linked to a WealthTek client money account, also making a voluntary £6.3 million payment. Similarly, financial services firm Sapia Partners provided a voluntary £19.64 million in April after being censured for inadequate client safeguards. WealthTek’s principal partner was charged in 2024 with offences including fraud and money laundering, with a trial set for 2027.
