Serious Fraud Office arrests four in £140m Signature Living probe

The Serious Fraud Office has raided three residences and made four arrests in Merseyside and Greater Manchester as part of an investigation into Liverpool developer Signature Group. The developer’s Signature Living sites went into administration in 2020. Properties in its portfolio included Millennium House in Liverpool as well as “a cruise liner that was marketed as a ‘flotel’ to be moored off Canary Wharf in London and travel to Ibiza”, according to the SFO. A spokesperson for the SFO said Signature operated for more than seven years, buying up “predominantly historic buildings within the UK for redevelopment into luxury hotels, residential apartments and office spaces”. “Investors loaned money to Signature or purchased a hotel room, apartment or office space in one of the group’s properties, with promised returns on their investment of between 8% and 15%,” said the spokesperson. “The business collapsed into administration with losses of up to £140m.” The SFO said the business attracted more than 1,000 UK and international investors in the redevelopment of iconic landmarks such as Belfast’s Scottish Mutual Building and the Coal Exchange in Cardiff. The people who have been arrested have not been named by the SFO. Nick Ephgrave, director of the Serious Fraud Office, said: “The scheme offered attractive returns and used much-loved local landmarks to lure investors. “We have people up and down the country left out of pocket, and buildings left derelict at the centre of our cities. Today’s arrests and searches will help us reconstruct exactly what happened. This is now an active criminal investigation.”  See also: Signature Living resi devs go into administration Photo: Signature Mill, Manchester © Signature Living Group