A buyer is being sought for ailing law firm Ince, which has announced it is insolvent and will enter into administration, the UK corporate insolvency process.
Quantuma has been appointed as administrator and will aim to sell the group’s business to a third-party purchaser “as soon as possible,” a release said on Wednesday.
Ince has been attempting to complete its audit process for the financial year to 31 March 2022, but said on Wednesday that the complexity and length of the process has put “increasing pressure” on its cash flows.
The firm has been in discussions with its major lender, other creditors and HM Revenue & Customs to gain support, but said that talks have failed.
“The company has now been informed by a major creditor that it will no longer continue to support the business and, as a result, in order to preserve the future value of the group’s business and to protect the interests of employees and other stakeholders, the board of the company has regrettably concluded that it has no choice but to place the company into administration,” Ince said in an exchange filing on Wednesday.
Anglo-South African bank Investec provided £17m in loans to Ince in 2021, which are secured against certain Ince entities. However, TradeWinds understands the bank has supported the law firm throughout its troubles and is not the creditor that pulled the plug on Ince.
The audit is being undertaken by BDO. Ince has reportedly alleged that other public companies have suffered similar delays in BDO audits. The firm decline to comment when approached by TradeWinds on Wednesday.
Trading of Ince’s shares has been suspended by the London Stock Exchange since 3 January.
The group comprises Ince Consulting Holdings Limited; Ince Gordon Dadds Services Limited, members of Ince Gordon Dadds Holdings LLP and Ince Gordon Dadds LLP.
The struggling law firm has seen a number of senior staff leave in recent months, including its head of shipping, Julian Clark.
A cyber-attack a year ago cost Ince almost £5m and, in July 2022, Ince said it was planning to raise around £7m by issuing new shares to avoid “financial difficulties”, causing the stock price to halve.
Chief executive Adrian Biles said he would be stepping down as part of the financing process and the company then took a £7m hit from selling subsidiary Arden Partners, which it had acquired in October 2021.
Biles, who was also managing partner, was later sacked over an alleged conflict of interest.
A settlement was reached with him and another former director, John Biles, its ex-head of finance.
Ince has struggled with defections and internal dissension since before its 2018 takeover by non-shipping London firm Gordon Dadds, which had gone public the year before.
