CHARING CROSS BANK.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1112, 27 April 1911, Page 7

CHARING CROSS BANK.

DEFICIT £1,699,000. ALLEGED FALSE PROSPECTUS, Bj Telecraph—Press Association—Copyright London, April 25. A. W. Carpenter, proprietor of the Charing Cross Bank, which recently foiled, the deficit being <£1,699,000, was charged "at Bow Street Police Court with obtaining .£SOO two daya beforo his bankruptcy by means.of an alleged false prospectus. Tho prosecution stated that there were 18,066 creditors. Carpenter was admitted to bail in a sum of >210,000. OFFICIAL RECEIVER'S : REPORT. The Senior Official Receiver in Bankruptcy, Mr. E. Leadam Hough, in January issued to the creditors of Alfred William Carpenter, who carried on tho Charing Cross Bank, a summary of the bankrupt's statement of affairs with observations upon the ease. The summary shows, according to Mr. Car'ponter's estimates: i • £ Gross liabilities .'. '2,855,512 Expected to rank for dividend 2,830,791 Assets expected to produce 1,131,557 Leaving a deficiency of 1,699,233 .Unsecured creditors 18,91iG The principal . liability is placed , at, '-22,813,102,. in respect of depositors and customers who had current accounts. The deficiency account filed includes the following items: £ Bad debts 15,660 Loss in trading 684,802 l'he Official Receiver remarks: "The bankrupt hns, during tho past ten rears, put money into a number of ventures, -some of a highly speculative character. His business was never that of a bank, properly so-called: and for the past six years the principal business transacted by him has been the obtaining of deposits of cash for the purpose of enabling him to .finance the speculative schemes in which he has been engaged. He admits .that the forty provincial brahches wero opened mainly for that purpose. "The bankrupt did not admit that he was insolvent at the date of the receiving order, though his statement of affairs nowf shows a large deficiency. lie attributes his failure to the action of . the Director of Public Prosecutions, compelling him to close his doors forthwith and file his petition. Ho. says he believes tho Director acted thus in consequence of statements made to him by a firm of chartered accountants who had been investigating tho books of account of some of his (bankrupt's) branches, and also the accounts in Gaspe relating to the construction pf the coast railway, and to the Gaspe Lumber and Trading Company." On July 1, 1907 (it is shown), the bankrupt, without professional advice or assistance," prepared a statement purporting to show that the . , <£ s. d. Value of his assets was ... 1,007,949 2 3 The amount of his liabilities was 1,236,871 2 8 'And that he had a surplus of 371,077 19 7 "In this statement," the Official Receiver remarks, "there was a clerical error which increased the estimated segregate value of his assets by ,€IOO.OOO. Ho in several instances valued his interest .in undertakings nnd ventures at amounts which were far in excess of cost, and, in tho view of the Official Receiver,- far in excess of their true value. In the Statement of Affairs now filed bv the bankrupt certain assets which, for the purposes of the 1907 statement, had been treated'as of .great value, are treated as unrealisable; ■while the value of another important asBet has been great] v. written down. "The loss of trading is mainly accounted for bv the nigh rates of interest allowed by the bankrupt on deposits. It is doubtful if his gross income for some years past has been sufficient to meet his business expenses and his drawings for household and personal purnose.s. The books of account koot by the kankrupt do not sufficiently ~ disclose his business transactions and financial position. He has-, not. kept a full, record of all his payments. nor has he nTepared proper bal-• nnce-sheets and profit and loss accounts for manv years past." The Offic'al Receiver directs attention to nn'item. "Other property, .£966,565," in the bankrupt's estimate of assets, and says it consists of: —■ ■ Stocks and shares other than the Canadian Railway securities valued at <£56,815 10 Four motor-cars nnd snare tyres ; 721 10 Unused cheque stamps 800 0 Various' freehold properties in * ' England ■. 8.25(1 0 Ditto leasehold properties 17.000 0 Properties in Quebec 37,817 14 Interest in railway, under- . '.takings in Canada ". <£845,181 0 The bankrupt, states that he has valued his Canadian assets only at the amount of his expenditure thereon, but he anticipates that on the completion of the coast' lino such assets should realise at least £4.000,000. ."The realisable value of the Canadian assets and the book debts," the Official Receiver comments, "must bo regarded as doubtful." '