The former chief executive of Carillion has been fined £237,700 by the City regulator for his role in misleading statements by the company before its collapse eight years ago.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) described Richard Howson’s handling of the construction firm’s communications with the market, ahead of its demise in 2018, as “reckless”.
The fine was imposed after he dropped an appeal over the FCA’s planned penalty.
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Carillion‘s collapse resulted in thousands of job losses and brought chaos to dozens of public sector building projects.
The company, which was involved in building and maintaining hospitals and roads, owed close to £7bn.
Richard Howson. File pic: PA
“As group chief executive, Mr Howson was aware of serious financial troubles in Carillion’s UK construction business. He failed to reflect this in company announcements or alert its board and audit committee, leading to poor oversight”, the FCA said.
“Mr Howson acted recklessly and was knowingly concerned in breaches by Carillion of the Market Abuse Regulation and the Listing Rules.”
Last month, the FCA revealed fines against two former Carillion finance chiefs. Richard Adam and Zafar Khan were handed penalties of £232,800 and £138,900 respectively.
Steve Smart, executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said: “Carillion’s failure was significant. Jobs were lost, public sector projects put at risk and investors, who trusted the company to give them accurate information, suffered large scale losses.
“That’s why the FCA worked diligently to hold the company and its senior leaders to account”, he concluded.
