THE OWNERS of a Basingstoke-based business have been disqualified as directors as a result of "nefarious trading activities" of an internet brokerage they ran.

Jos Timmer, also known as James Thompson, and Elizabeth Sarah Rowe were directors of More Financial Limited, which had offices at Winton House, and was wound up in the public interest by the High Court on August 19 2013, following an Insolvency Service Company Investigations probe into the affairs of the company.

Mr Timmer, a Dutch national, has been disqualified for twelve years, which began on March 29 2017, and Mrs Rowe has been given a six-year ban, which began on August 1, 2016.

Mr Timmer caused, and Mrs Rowe allowed, the company to operate in manner which lacked probity and failed to maintain or preserve accurate accounting records.

Mr Timmer also failed to co-operate with, and actively hindered, the various investigations.

The winding up of the company in the public interest resulted in assets totalling £499,609 being safeguarded and limited the known deficiency to £70,891.

More Financial Limited acted as a loan broker between consumers and financial institutions, charging a fee to individual members of the public.

The company has also traded under these trading names: Century Finance, E Loans 4 U, Heritage Finance, Heritage Financial, Heritagefinancial.co.uk, Loans Expert, Loans Express, Loansexpert.co.uk, Loans-express.net, The Loan Shop, The Loans Express, UK Loans Expert, and UK Loans Express.

Cheryl Lambert, chief investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: “The company was wound up in the public interest because of the manner in which it was set up and operated – to extract small amounts of moneys from a significant number of people through duplicitous means. In tandem, the mechanisms for complaint and retrieval/reimbursement of moneys were deliberately opaque to the point of obstructing the public.

"Furthermore, during the Insolvency Service investigations Mr Timmer continually obstructed and frustrated the enquiries.”

“The nature of the customer base was such that the company was fishing in a pond of vulnerable and financially distressed people.

"The relatively small amounts being taken from them had a disproportionate impact.

"The company preyed like a vulture upon those most in need.”

“This activity goes to the very core of our economic system – that people place trust in each other when they financially interact.

"This is a gross market abuse. These investigations send a further message to the unscrupulous, and their inattentive facilitators.

"You will be pursued, stopped and dealt with. We will protect the British public from those vulture capitalists who seek to line their pockets by preying on the unwary, inexperienced and financially distressed.”

The Daily Echo's sister paper the Basingstoke Gazette attempted to contact Mr Timmer and Mrs Rowe but was unable to.