Alltrust completes its takeover of Rowanmoor

The sale of failed firm Rowanmoor Personal Pensions Limited (RPPL) to SIPP and SSAS provider Alltrust completed on Friday 3 March following exchange of contracts in December 2022. Rowanmoor went into administration last summer after a flood of complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service. According to the FCA, RPPL received a number of complaints about "historic, high-risk, non-standard assets" and for not carrying out "adequate" due diligence before accepting these assets into customers’ SIPPs. Following the complaints, RPPL sought professional advice about liabilities from existing and potential complaints. After the review, RPPL’s directors determined that the company was insolvent and should be placed into administration. Adam Stephens and Christopher Allen of Evelyn Partners LLP were appointed as joint administrators of RPPL on 31 August 2022, after RPPL became insolvent. In September the FSCS said it had received nearly 3,000 claims against 116 advice firms involved in recommending pension products from Rowanmoor. Rowanmoor Personal Pensions was previously part of Embark Group but was floated off as a standalone business in February 2022 when Lloyds Banking Group bought the Embark business for £390m. Alltrust is an established provider of trusteeship and administration services for various types of pension scheme including a variety of SIPP structures, with a particular focus on offering flexible investment options for its clients. Adam Stephens, lead administrator, said: “We are delighted to announce completion of the sale of RPPL’s SIPP and FPT business to Alltrust. This will provide continuity of service to RPPL’s clients. “We are working with Alltrust to ensure a smooth transition of the business.” CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP have acted as legal advisers to the joint administrators and have assisted on the sale, led by restructuring and insolvency partner Julian Turner, corporate partner Rizwan Rahman and pensions partner Alistair Hill. Customers have been told that it is business as usual with Alltrust continuing to provide the normal full range of services to clients previously provided by RPPL. The administrators have sent letters to clients and their advisers that will be received in the coming days which provide further details regarding the business sale. Before entering administration RPPL specialised in the provision of scheme administration and scheme operation services in respect of SIPPs and FPTs. It administered around 4,000 SIPPs and 800 FPTs, with a total investment value of £1.5bn. WBR Group acquired the failed firm’s SSAS business in January.

Alltrust completes its takeover of Rowanmoor

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