UT (Tax & Chancery) UT-2022-0000150 - [2024] UKUT 00254 (TCC)

Paragraph 3 of the Decision Notice is headed “summary of reasons”, and reads:

“On the basis of the facts and matters described below, the Authority is not
satisfied that Mr Kalaris is a fit and proper person to perform the controlled
functions to which the Application relates. This is because there are reasonable grounds for considering that in interviews with the Authority in relation to two different investigations Mr Kalaris failed to be open and cooperative and gave untrue and misleading evidence. The Authority is therefore not satisfied as to his honesty and integrity.”

The “facts and matters” set out details of the capital raising exercise conducted by Barclays in June and October 2008, including the Authority’s view that further disclosure should have been made in the related prospectus and other documents; that Barclays’ failure to make those disclosures was “misleading, false and/or deceptive”, and that Mr Kalaris was “involved” in the transactions.

However, in subsequent correspondence, the Authority stated that it was not alleging Mr Kalaris had behaved improperly in relation to the capital raising itself, but rather that the answers he gave during the 2013 Interview relating the June 2008 exercise had lacked candour and/or were untrue.

In relation to the GenVen Report, the Decision Notice states, and the Authority subsequently confirmed, that the Decision was based on the answers given by Mr Kalaris during the 2014 Interview, and not on Mr Kalaris having acted improperly by suppressing the GenVen Report.