On 18 June 2024, LCC Trans-Sending Limited entered special administration under the Payment and Electronic Money Institution Insolvency Regulations 2021.
Payment services firm LCC entered special administration on 18 June 2024 and has now ceased trading.
Christine Mary Laverty, Russell Simpson and Jarred Erceg of Grant Thornton UK LLP, have been appointed as joint special administrators.
LCC is authorised and regulated by the FCA to provide payment services, specifically money remittance services, under the Payment Services Regulations 2017 (PSRs).
LCC traded as:
- Small World Money Transfer
- Small World Financial Services
- Express Funds
- Global Link
- Bayba (UK)
It is also supervised by His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for money laundering purposes.
On 10 June 2024, LCC closed to new business and stopped accepting funds from customers.
On being made aware of LCC’s situation, the FCA took steps to protect consumers. On 13 June 2024, LCC signed an undertaking that it will not:
- on-board new customers
- on-board or register new agents
- accept new funds from existing customers
If you have money with LCC or have used one of LCC’s agents and have trouble accessing your funds, you should first visit the frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the joint special administrators’ website.
If you still have questions you can contact the Small World customer service team.
- Phone: +44 (0)20 3198 0387
- Email: support@smallworldfs.com
The Payment and Electronic Money Institution Insolvency Regulations 2021 introduced a new special administration regime for payment and e-money institutions. A special administration is similar to an ordinary administration – however the special administrators have an additional objective of returning customer funds as soon as reasonably practicable.
In the LCC case, consumer funds are not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The FSCS only applies to certain types of activity. This does not include payment services. Under the PSRs, with which regulated payments firms must comply, there are requirements on how customers’ money should be protected, and these requirements are known as ‘safeguarding’.
When LCC provided regulated payment services (specifically, money remittance services), it was required to have appropriate arrangements in place to protect customer funds. The way in which these customer funds need to be protected is set out in the PSRs and they are referred to as safeguarded funds.
There are different ways in which a payment institution can safeguard customer funds – however, the safeguarding requirements apply to LCC’s regulated money remittance activities and LCC must comply with them at all times.
Safeguarding is a key consumer protection measure within the PSRs. The purpose of safeguarding is to protect customer funds if a firm fails. The joint special administrators will carry out an assessment of all funds held by LCC to establish which are safeguarded for customers.
Following the special administration order, the joint special administrators are responsible for LCC, but LCC continues to be FCA-authorised.
The joint special administrators are officers of the court and need to comply with all insolvency law. The individuals appointed are authorised to act as licensed insolvency practitioners. The joint special administrators have statutory objectives which include engaging with authorities, including the FCA.
