Global Plantations

Mis-sold Global Plantation Investments

Global Plantations Limited invested into forestry investments in Malaysia and Bali. The investment model, based on the planting, cultivation and harvesting of trees, was pitched to investors as a secure, high-yield and environmentally-friendly opportunity. However, the investment was not as secure as it was billed to be, as the trees were still at risk from timber diseases, pests, natural disasters, bad weather, changing prices of timber and local political changes.

In June 2017, Global Plantations Limited entered into insolvency proceedings. The liquidation of the company left investors unsure of the value of their investment, with many at risk of losing considerable sums they had invested through SIPPs.

As Global Plantations Limited investments were high risk, and illiquid, they weren’t suitable for ordinary investors looking to grow a pension pot. In these cases it is possible for customers to seek compensation and recoup some of their losses.

Did you have a SIPP investment?

A self-invested personal pension (SIPP) is a scheme that gives you a higher level of control over your own pension. This means you get access to more choices on where you can invest your retirement fund, allowing you to manage your own investments and savings, rather than relying on a pension company or fund manager. The appeal of such a scheme is clear, but the risks associated with it are sometimes not made obvious to investors.

Mis-sold SIPPs have become the subject of an increasing number of complaints made to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).