Not upheld: Investment mis-selling complaint against Scottish Equitable Plc (trading as Aegon)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr B complained that Aegon unfairly forced the sale of his Greatland Gold PLC shares following a mandatory corporate action that moved the company's domicile from the UK to Australia. Aegon sold the shares on 26 June 2025 at £3.274383 per share because Australian-domiciled shares were ineligible for its platform under a trustee policy requiring UK, Luxembourg or Ireland domicile. The ombudsman found Aegon did not act unfairly, as the trustee policy was established in 2022, Aegon received notice only after the court order was approved (leaving no time for alternative instructions), and the shares were operationally unsuitable due to tax implications. Critically, Mr B subsequently repurchased the shares at £2.50 per share through AJ Bell, resulting in a gain of over £5,000, demonstrating no financial loss from the forced sale. The complaint was not upheld.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman concluded that Aegon did not act unfairly because: (1) the trustee policy requiring UK/Luxembourg/Ireland domicile was established in 2022 and was within the trustees' rights under clause 7 of the ARC terms; (2) Greatland Gold's move to Australian domicile made the shares operationally unsuitable due to tax implications; (3) Aegon received insufficient notice to request alternative instructions, as Winterflood only notified Aegon after the court order was approved and the action was certain; (4) even if Aegon's actions were questioned, there was no demonstrable financial loss because Mr B subsequently repurchased the shares at a lower price (£2.50 vs £3.274383), resulting in a gain of over £5,000; and (5) Mr B's decision to liquidate his entire Aegon portfolio and transfer to AJ Bell was his own choice, not a mandatory consequence of Aegon's actions.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website