Online Trading Firm Sues Former Executives Over $21m Losses in the High Court

An online trading company has accused its former global head of human resources and two other senior employees of causing losses of approximately $21 million by poaching clients and staff and disclosing confidential information to competitors.

In a High Court claim, the claimant alleges that the former Global HR head, together with its former chief technology officer and former chief marketing officer, was directly involved in the establishment of competing businesses during the course of their employment.

According to the claim, the three employees covertly assisted rival companies by providing them with the claimant’s online trading platform and reproducing its internal business and information systems. The claimant further alleges that its confidential business information was used to replicate key aspects of its operations.

The claimant provides online trading services to retail clients, as well as management, marketing and operational support to companies within its group. It states that it employed the three defendants from around the beginning of 2019 and that, during their engagement, they became directly concerned or involved in the establishment and operation of competing businesses.

The claim alleges that the defendants discouraged prospective customers from doing business with the claimant and diverted them to rival firms. It is also alleged that they solicited and encouraged senior employees to leave the claimant to join other companies.

The defendants are further accused of disclosing confidential client lists, business plans, website designs, and unpublished financial and pricing information to competitors. The claimant contends that the defendants failed to preserve the confidentiality of its intellectual property, including its operational models, trading interface, client legal agreements and client-onboarding processes.

The claim also alleges that two of the defendants, in breach of fiduciary duties, made misleading representations to the Financial Conduct Authority regarding the claimant’s control, ownership and governance. In particular, it is alleged that they falsely informed the regulator that an individual was acquiring a controlling stake in the claimant, and that a corporate shareholder’s interest would fall below 50%, when in fact that corporate entity remained the controlling shareholder. The claimant says those representations led the Financial Conduct Authority to cancel its trading licence.

The claimant is represented by Arfan Khan, instructed by Margherita Barbagallo of Dragon Argent Ltd. The case has been reported in the press.

29th Dec 2025

Arfan Khan

Call 2001