| Stewart Ford | |
| Birth Name: | Stewart Owen Ford |
| Nationality: | British |
| Occupation: | Founder and CEO, Keydata |
Stewart Owen Ford (born 1964) is a British businessman, the founder and chief executive (CEO) of the failed financial company Keydata Investment Services. He was fined a record £76 million by the Financial Conduct Authority in January 2019.[1]
Stewart Owen Ford was born in 1964.[2] He lived in Edinburgh until he was 17.[3]
Ford studied printing in London when he was 20. Afterwards, he went back to Edinburgh and started in business for himself. He had a career as a printer, publisher and then a financial services entrepreneur.
On 26 May 2015, it was announced that Ford had been fined a record £75 million by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).[4] The FCA fine is in connection with the alleged mis-selling of £475 million of "death bonds", wrongly encouraging buyers to believe that they were entitled to tax-free ISAs.[5] Ford is counter-suing the FCA for £370 million, claiming that the closure of Keydata was "politically motivated", that the company was a "highly successful" one with nearly £3 billion of assets under management, and that his reputation had suffered "grievous and irreparable" harm.[6]
According to Ford, the one-day Upper Tribunal case management hearing for his challenge to the FCA's decision to fine him £75 million has been set for 23 September 2015.[7]
The decision of the Upper Tribunal was handed down on 6 November 2018 with Judge Berner finding for the Respondent (the FCA) and accepting their request to increase the fine to £76 million.[8]