The Bank of England's Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) issued a Final Notice fining George Jay Hambro, a former notified non-executive director of Wyelands Bank Plc, GBP 72,000 for breaching Individual Conduct Rule 2, which requires individuals to act with due skill, care and diligence. The PRA found his conduct between 3 July 2017 and 19 February 2020 fell below the standards expected and created prudential risks, across capital recognition, large exposures assessments and compliance with Wyelands’ internal Engagement Policy for managing potential conflicts of interest linked to the wider GFG Alliance. The breaches related to three areas: failing to make appropriate inquiries about a GBP 10 million capital injection that was indirectly funded from the proceeds of a loan Wyelands had made to a third party, contributing to Wyelands reporting it to the PRA as Common Equity Tier 1 capital when it was not; failing to make sufficient inquiries about a GFG executive’s resignation date before instructing another GFG executive to record it, despite understanding it was relevant to whether Wyelands was in breach of its large exposure limit; and failing to ensure the Engagement Policy was followed when involved in proposing transactions or potential transactions between Wyelands and GFG members or associates. The penalty included a material adjustment for deterrence, and the settlement did not qualify for a 30% reduction because it was agreed after the end of the discount period. The enforcement action follows the PRA’s April 2023 public censure of Wyelands for significant regulatory failings and its January 2024 fine of former chief executive Iain Mark Hunter for breaches of three PRA Conduct Rules. Wyelands entered wind down in March 2020, repaid its unconnected depositors at the PRA’s direction and surrendered its PRA authorisation in April 2024.

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