THE WINE INDEX IS SHUT DOWN BY DTI

Published: 23 July, 2008

By Jim Budd

The DTI has moved to close down The Wine Index, a wine investment company. On Thursday 3 April the High Court appointed a provisional liquidator at a without warning' hearing, on petition from the DTI. The company was incorporated in December 1999 but remained dormant until December 2001. The sole director was 45-year-old Pierre Stephen Boyd. Boyd is also a director of Bordeaux Estates Ltd. The Wine Index traded from 259-269 Old Marylebone Road, London and offered over-priced Bordeaux as an investment. In February 2002 The Wine Index was selling 1996 Lafite at 3,650, when it could be bought from Farr Vintners for 2,000. It is understood that Frederic Achom and Grant Boington were involved in the company. The pair were directors of Boington & Fredericks, another Bordeaux investment company which was closed in the public interest in November 2001. In September 2000 Achom and Grant were imprisoned for a year for an EU fraud. The pair are also disqualified from holding directorships for 11 years, until 22 July 2013. It is possible that Achom and Grant may now face prosecution for being involved in running a company while disqualified. The DTI has now closed 14 Claret investment companies since 1998.

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