Trust company goes into administration

The Manchester-based firm, which provided corporate trustee and estate-planning services to consumers, went into administration on Friday 22 April.

There has been concern about the financial strength of the firm for some time, according to the administrators.

The director of the company took the decision to place the firm into administration due to the, “company’s present and likely future financial position, in order to protect the interests of its creditors and clients.”

Insolvency and restructuring firm Kroll has been appointed administrators with Geoff Bouchier and Jimmy Saunders appointed joint administrators. 

Philips Trust Corporation was incorporated in 2017 and the 2,400 trusts it administers mostly hold residential property and cash investments or both.

Mr Bouchier, joint administrator, said: “There has been concern regarding the company’s affairs for several months so it will be a relief for the company’s clients and creditors that independent professionals have now been appointed to the company.  

“We are immediately undertaking a review of the company’s financial position and that of the clients’ estate and trusts with a view to updating the court with our key findings, including the proposed methodology to deal with the ongoing administering of the trusts and proposal for distributing trust assets to clients.”

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The joint administrators say they will be contacting clients and creditors of the company formally in the near future confirming the appointment and setting out the next steps. 

The company’s website www.philipstrust.co.uk contains the latest update from the joint administrators, including client FAQs. There is also a dedicated call centre which can be reached on 0808 273 9201. All other creditor enquiries should be directed to PTC@kroll.com.

The administrators say that until they carry out a full assessment of the business they cannot respond to queries on individual trusts.

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