Two more IFISA managers removed from register
Two more Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) managers have been removed from HMRC’s ISA manager register, as part of an ongoing crackdown on unused ISA permissions.
Crowdcube and WM Thomson have both been removed from the official ISA manager list, after holding unused IFISA permissions for several years.
Despite being authorised to launch their own IFISA products, in conversations with Alternative Credit Investor over the years, both Crowdcube and WM Thomson confirmed that they had no plans to launch the tax-free investment product.
HMRC has been cracking down on unused ISA permissions in recent years. Last month, Business Loan Network (BLN), the former peer-to-peer lending arm of alternative lender ThinCats, had its IFISA permissions removed.
And earlier this year, business management consultancy firm Sapia Partners lost its IFISA permissions. Like WM Thomson and Crowdcube, Sapia Partners never launched its own IFISA product, although it did temporarily act as a principal for some IFISA-holding P2P lending platforms.
In May 2021, a working group was established to improve HMRC’s ISA manager register, in response to the Gloster report’s call for better engagement between regulatory bodies. Since then, a number of dormant IFISA providers have been identified, and the tax body has taken action to remove them from the register.
This followed an exclusive report from Alternative Credit Investor which found that just 40 per cent of registered IFISA providers were open to retail investment during the 2020/21 tax year.
Read more: Autumn Statement: Jeremy Hunt plans ISA overhaul