Hundreds more rely on Neil Woodford’s claims

Hundreds of investors who lost money in the Woodford scandal three-and-a-half years ago have said they will join a High Court action against two key parties involved in the disaster.

Litigation specialist RGL, which issued the claim nine days ago on behalf of 3,200 investors who were immeasurably affected by the suspension and demerger of Woodford Equity Income, says more than 500 investors have come forward to join the claim in recent days.

RGL’s High Court move, which was exclusively reported in The Mail on Sunday last week, targets Link Fund Solutions and investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown.

He believes both investors failed as the £3.8bn Woodford fund collapsed, leading to huge investor losses.

RGL alleges that Link failed to protect the interests of the fund’s 300,000 investors when manager Neil Woodford shifted the portfolio from blue-chip UK stocks to risky illiquid firms.

As the authorized corporate director of the fund, Link’s duty was to protect investors.

As for FTSE100-listed Hargreaves Lansdown, it recommended the fund until it suspended operations in June 2019, despite internal concerns that the portfolio was becoming increasingly risky.

In June 2019, 134,000 Hargreaves Lansdown clients had a direct stake in equity returns and 160,000 had indirect exposure through multi-manager funds managed by the platform. Following our report, Hargreaves Lansdown chief executive Chris Hill said he would step down by November 2023.

Last week, founder Peter Hargreaves, the company’s largest shareholder, accused chairman Deanna Oppenheimer of overseeing “diabolical” activities. Shares in Hargreaves Lansdown have fallen by more than 50 per cent in the past year.

The Financial Conduct Authority has yet to publish its report on the demise of Equity Income. But he told Link he faces a £50m fine and £306m in compensation.