‘Tiny’ brothers facing investigation
The Mohsan Brothers face a possible claim from Grant Thornton following the accountant’s investigation into the Asian entrepreneurs’ insolvent IT company, Granville Technology.
The brothers, who were once worth an estimated £175m, could also be barred from acting as directors of British companies if the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) decides to bring a director disqualification action when it sees evidence from Granville’s administrator Grant Thornton.
The administrator is preparing a report for the DTI on the directors’ conduct.
It has also had informal discussions with the DTI. The DTI declined to comment on the case.
Granville, which made Time and Tiny computers, collapsed in late July with around £70m worth of debt.
It had not submitted accounts to Companies House for two years and it is understood that Grant Thornton has not been able to recover any management accounts. The founding Mohsan brothers and two other directors — Kieran Crowley and Brian Lynn — quit the company before it went down.
Grant Thornton last week prepared a report for creditors saying it had identified improprieties that required further investigation.
Creditors had pressed the administrator to look into wrongful trading. According to the report, assets of more than £8m have gone missing. Stock from the company’s 80 high street stores has disappeared and over £3m was spent on setting up a mystery French subsidiary of Granville. Grant Thornton will now try to claw back the money.
Aside from trade creditors and members of the public who never received their orders, Granville also owes money to people who bought its breakdown insurance.
Unlike most high street stores, Granville absorbed more than £10m a year from warranties into its general cashflow.