The company entered administration owing more than £3 million
The director of a century-old Scottish machinery firm which went into administration last year has been banned after failing to declare more than £1.5 million in VAT.
David Smith, 61, was the director of FB Realisations Limited, which was known for decades as Balgownie Limited.
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However, for more than three years between 2019 and 2022, Smith submitted false VAT returns on behalf of the company in his role as finance director without the knowledge of his fellow directors.
Smith, of Kirkton of Bourtie, Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, has been disqualified as a company director for 11 years following investigations by the Insolvency Service.
Mike Smith, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:
Balgownie Limited was set up on Companies House in 1973 but had a trading history dating back to 1907.
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The undeclared VAT totalling £1,575,584 consisted of:
Smith signed a disclosure with HMRC in March 2023 where he admitted deliberately under-declaring the amount of VAT his company should have paid.
Balgownie Limited went into administration in March 2024, with 24 people losing their jobs and creditors owed £3,163,795.
However, 15 jobs were saved when the business and its assets were bought out of administration by another company the following month.
The Secretary of State for Business and Trade accepted a disqualification undertaking from Smith, and his ban started on Monday 21 July.
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It prevents him from being involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court.
Smith was declared bankrupt in August 2024 following a petition from one of the company’s creditors.
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