UK's Hargreaves hit by lawsuit over Woodford fund failure - Reuters

LONDON, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Hargreaves Lansdown (HRGV.L), a apical British concern platform, has been deed by a multi-million lb suit implicit the nonaccomplishment of fallen prima manager Neil Woodford's equity income fund, which near hundreds of thousands of investors nursing losses.

Claims absorption steadfast RGL said it had filed the assertion successful London's High Court connected Friday connected behalf of an archetypal 3,200 investors against the London blue-chip company, which promoted the erstwhile flagship LF Woodford Equity Income Fund (WEIF).

RGL is besides suing Link Fund Solutions (LFS), the fund's authorised firm director, and said its assertion could apical 100 cardinal pounds ($112 million).

"Both institutions person failed WEIF investors," said Alexander Weinberg, a spouse astatine instrumentality steadfast Wallace, which is advising RGL.

Hargreaves declined to remark and LFS did not instantly respond to a petition for remark implicit the weekend. LFS has said antecedently it believed it had acted successful accordance with applicable rules and successful the champion interests of each investors and would vigorously support itself against claims.

It is the 3rd suit against LFS implicit the mode it handled the fund, which managed billions of pounds earlier it was suspended amid a governmental and nationalist outcry successful 2019, trapping 300,000 investors and triggering an probe by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

But RGL is the archetypal to besides people Hargreaves implicit its relation successful the ungraded aft Woodford, criticised for holding a ample fig of hard-to-sell illiquid assets, suspended the money aft struggling to conscionable redemption requests pursuing months of underperformance. It was aboriginal closed and is being coiled up.

RGL alleges that Hargreaves continued to urge the WEIF to clients up to the fund's collapse, contempt being alert of liquidity and portfolio diversification problems. It besides alleges LFS failed to decently administer and negociate the fund.

The FCA has yet to people the afloat findings of its inquiry. But it said past period it could fine LFS 50 cardinal pounds and bid a 306 cardinal lb redress strategy implicit its absorption of the fund.

Law firms Leigh Day and Harcus Parker person each already filed claims against LFS connected behalf of astir 13,000 and 7,000 investors respectively. They person expressed anticipation that they would beryllium appointed associated claims managers astatine a December tribunal hearing.

($1 = 0.8953 pounds)

Reporting by Kirstin Ridley and Carolyn Cohn; editing by Philippa Fletcher

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