Fruit and veg retailer disqualified as company director and ordered to pay compensation after investing Covid loan on stock market
Company director disqualified and ordered to pay compensation after Bounce Back Loan misconduct
- Emra Kayam invested £19,000 of his £35,000 Bounce Back Loan on the stock market when the money should have been used for the benefit of his business
- Kayam also transferred part of the loan to his personal bank account and said he used some of the funds to repay debts to his friends
- The 35-year-old was disqualified as a company director for seven years and ordered to pay compensation of more than £37,000 at a hearing in London
The director of a fruit and veg retailer who improperly invested more than half of a Covid loan on the stock market when it should have been used for his business has been disqualified and ordered to pay the money back.
Emra Kayam, 35, was handed a seven-year directorship disqualification order at the High Court in London on Tuesday 30 April.
Kayam, of Kings Road, London, was also ordered to pay compensation of £37,460 within two weeks.
Peter Smith, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:
Emra Kayam rashly invested taxpayers’ money on the stock market, only withdrawing the funds from the platform when he lost more than £2,000 within days.
Kayam’s actions in exploiting the Bounce Back Loan Scheme will not be tolerated which is why he has been banned as a director until 2031 and ordered to repay the money he secured from the public purse.
The disqualification also sends a message to directors that you cannot dissolve your company in an attempt to evade sanctions.
Kayam received the £35,000 Bounce Back Loan in June 2020 for his Kayalar Limited business.
Under the rules of the scheme, companies could only use the money from the loans for the economic benefit of the business and not for personal use.
However, within days Kayam had transferred £15,920 to his own personal account, which he said was to repay loans from his friends.
Kayam also transferred £19,000 to online investor trading broker platforms during June and July 2020.
After losing more than £2,000 on the platforms, Kayam withdrew the remaining funds and transferred £16,600 to his personal account.
Kayalar was dissolved in November 2020 with the £35,000 loan unpaid.
Kayam’s compensation order covers the £35,000 he secured, plus interest at the rate in the loan agreement.
The disqualification order prevents him from becoming involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court.
Further information
- Emra Kayam is of Kings Road, London. His date of birth is 1 September 1988
- Kayalar Limited (company number 08755168)
- Individuals subject to a disqualification order or undertaking are bound by a range of restrictions
- Read more about the Bounce Back Loan Scheme and the action the Insolvency Service can take if it finds misconduct
- Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct.