Compensation fund announced for SSL victims; first payments due in May
Published:Tuesday | April 8, 2025 | 12:09 AM
Victims of the alleged multibillion-dollar fraud at Stocks and Securities Limited (SSL) are being promised a partial payout, starting next month. It comes more than two years after news of the scheme devastated clients, including Jamaican sprint icon Usain Bolt.
In a notice dated April 3, 2025, trustee Caydion Campbell announced the establishment of the SSL Victims Compensation Fund, saying it is intended “to facilitate payouts to victims of the alleged fraud”.
Clients must submit proof of claims by April 30.
Campbell is leading the court-supervised closure of the investment firm.
“We are seeking to make a partial distribution to these clients in May 2025 and invite all affected clients, who have not yet done so, to submit their POCs...,” the notice stated. “Your submission should include any supporting documentation or other forms of evidence to substantiate actual losses suffered due to the alleged fraudulent activities.”
The update comes as clients continue to seek redress from what authorities have described as one of Jamaica’s largest-ever investment frauds, involving more than US$30 million (J$5 billion) allegedly siphoned from over 200 accounts.
In February, Bolt expressed frustration at the Government’s handling of the investigations.
“Clearly, it looks like if me no apply some pressure or do something or start make whole heap o’ questions being asked, me nah go get back nutten,” Bolt said on the podcast The Fix. A government-appointed temporary manager validated a US$6.2-million loss by Bolt’s company, Welljen.
An elderly woman, one of many senior citizens reportedly facing devastation, said investigators told her that the $60 million she gave SSL in 2019 was not invested.
“This has ruined me financially,” the 78-year-old told The Gleaner in February.
Welljen’s attorney, Linton Gordon, said he was unable to comment on the trustee’s announcement at this time.
“I’m declining to speak on it until I get a copy of what is being proposed,” he said yesterday.
Last October, a report from the trustee revealed that there was US$1-million employee dishonesty insurance payout, which some clients had hoped would be used for restitution.
NO PAYMENT TO VICTIMS
However, the trustee reported that the money was instead directed towards covering the costs of temporary management during a turbulent transition period. In September 2023, then Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke said the insurance proceeds were used to pay SSL bills and other expenses.
“No payment was made to the victims of the fraud,” the October report said. Welljen and elderly retiree Jean Forde are among the affected clients who are pursuing civil cases against SSL and Jean-Ann Panton, the former SSL client relationship manager who is the only person so far charged in connection with the fraud.
The report blamed SSL’s collapse on “antecedent issues with respect to fraud, mismanagement and inadequate governance”. It placed the value of SSL losses at approximately $4 billion, including $3.2 billion to just over 200 non-proprietary clients, regular clients whose funds and investments were held in their names, separate from the company’s own accounts.
With liabilities estimated at $1.03 billion as of May 2024 and realisable assets projected between $107 million and $254 million, Campbell’s team acknowledged that a full recovery is unlikely.
The base case scenario outlines that “only 68 per cent of SSL’s category-one obligations would be satisfied”, with no distribution to category-four creditors – primarily clients and noteholders.
However, the October report floated an optimistic outlook under which category-four unsecured creditors – mainly clients – might receive up to 30 per cent of their claims, though that depends on successfully monetising all assets at their book value.
The trustee proposed a 7.5 per cent quasi-management fee on SSL’s off-balance sheet assets, expected to generate $345 million. Of that amount, $153 million, or 44 per cent, is to be earmarked for the SSL Victims Compensation Fund, with the rest split between proprietary estate recovery and funding deficits for other clients.
The trustee also issued a reminder for submissions from clients with claims against SSL’s off-balance sheet portfolio. These clients, many of whom hold local and fixed-income securities stored at the Jamaica Central Securities Depository, are not directly impacted by the fraud, but must still verify and transfer their holdings.
At the centre of the criminal probe is Panton, who faces a 22-count indictment for allegedly orchestrating the fraud. Panton is to stand trial in May 2026. She has recanted a confession and denied any involvement.
In May 2024, Supreme Court Justice David Batts overturned the Financial Services Commission’s temporary control of SSL and affirmed the trustee’s appointment.
The FSC, which regulates investment houses, took control of SSL after the then Hugh Croskery-led firm reported the alleged fraud. The FSC has faced criticisms over its oversight after flagging SSL in 2017 for a “culture of non-compliance and mismanagement of client funds”.