Nicholas Wickham disqualified for gold investment fraud

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Nicholas Wickham was disqualified from company directorships for seven years by the High Court in a ruling on 10 July 2023, after the judge found dishonesty towards investors in Irish Gold and Silver Bullion Limited.

The company, based in Monkstown, sold gold and silver investments. The judge said Wickham repeatedly misrepresented how customer funds were used and pooled their money with company funds; investigators found no metal stock and €3,900 in the company bank account when the liquidator was appointed.

The judge set a 14-year headline sanction, halving it in light of mitigating factors, including Wickham’s acceptance of a disqualification order and a £310,000 payment to the liquidator. The judge said that payment was significant but inadequate given the company’s €1 million deficit and litigation costs.

The judge also noted Wickham had reversed his initial refusal to cooperate with the liquidator. The order followed the liquidator’s application and the settlement of separate proceedings; earlier court orders were lifted.