The failed peer-to-peer lender FundingSecure has been hit with a third so-called secret commission claim after a borrower alleged her mortgage broker was “bribed” with a payment of £17k.
Please donate to the Cheese Fund to support crowd-funded journalism of the P2P sector.
Reporting by Daniel Cloake.
In May 2022 this site exclusively reported on a claim by an East London based borrower. “FundingSecure face new threat over alleged ‘secret commission’ payment“.
We reported that the trial is expected to begin early next week, on 31st October, in a write-up of a recent hearing “FS Secret Commission Broker needs to “wake up and smell the coffee and realise their neck might be in the noose”, court told“.
The issue raised in this new claim was described as “near identical” by Mr George Mallet, the barrister representing the borrower at a court hearing held earlier today.
As background Mr Mallet told the court that the defendant “took out a loan on a property on Hodford Road with FundingSecure“. After falling behind with payments “FundingSecure seems to have suggested to her she speak to [a mortgage broker] to help solve her mortgage arrears“.
We were told the broker “seemed to advise she take out a mortgage on [a separate property] to pay off arrears…unbeknown to her the broker was paid a secret commission or bribe“.
Mr Mallet said there was a “very strong prima facia case commissions were paid” and referred to an invoice of £17,200, which he said had not been disclosed to his client.
We were told the loans were subject to “astronomical interest rates” and all “transpired to be a complete disaster, the debt spiralled out of all proportion“.
Deputy District Judge Perry said it was “quite clear the argument is a secret commission” and “in effect that is bribery. Bribery is a form of fraud. If we are talking about fraud then inevitably this has to end up in front of a circuit judge...The sooner the better.”
Suggesting the County Court in Central London would be a suitable venue, Mr Mallet said, “To have almost identical trials in the same court makes a lot of sense to me“.
A number of procedural matters were also discussed.
We’ll keep an eye open for any further hearings.
FundingSecure was fully authorised by the FCA and were placed into in administration in October 2019 “partly because the company could not support the costs of ongoing litigation”. Jonathan Avery-Gee, Edward Avery-Gee and Daniel Richardson of CG & Co were appointed as Joint Administrators of the Company.
Former director Richard Luxmore left the company after becoming caught up in allegations that he created “false and fraudulent documentation so as to conceal” payments of £8.15m whilst at the company. He denies these allegations.
Hearing Details
Barnet Civil Justice Centre
Before Deputy District Judge Perry
26/10/2022 10.00am
Courtroom 8
G1PP2860 FundingSecure Limited(in administration) -v- Umesi
Mouse in the Court 
One thought on “FundingSecure hit with third Secret Commission case”