The Insolvency Exchange has recently put in writing, marching orders for UK Insolvency Practitioners on behalf of TIX and it’s clients, HSBC, RBS Group, M&S Money, HBOS, and First Direct.

So without adieu, here are the top four reasons I love TIX, in reverse order.

Number 4: So many people would not have spent so much time researching and studying alleged price-fixing, collusion and cartels without The Insolvency Exchange and its “Important Changes to TIX Compliant Individual Voluntary Arrangement (“IVA”) Fee Structures" letter. Without that letter, people would never have sent so many emails around the ether that included sentences like “In the UK, anti-competitive behaviour is prohibited under Chapters I and II of the Competition Act 1998 and may be prohibited under Articles 81 and 82 of the EC Treaty. These laws prohibit anti-competitive agreements between businesses and the abuse of a dominant position by a business. Businesses that infringe competition law may face substantial financial penalties of up to ten per cent of their worldwide turnover.” See OFT publication.
 
Besides, without that TIX IVA letter Bill Burch would have been wandering the streets instead of spending all that time researching clever and controversial ideas about how IPs might address the current creditor behaviour.

Number 3: Legal professionals around the country are now blessing TIX for creating thousands of billable hours in legal research, planning sessions, and PowerPoint slide presentations.

At this moment, people are rushing around all over using the TIX IVA letter, and other TIX IVA documents, to get legal opinions and research on how to best proceed against participating parties that are engaging in collective action to control IVA access and to not treat customers fairly. It is reported to me that large pools of funding have been established to pay for legal actions in this matter.

Number 2: The recent TIX actions have created a race for a participating party in all of this mess to be the first to come forward and rush to the OFT and confess the alleged cartel to avoid a £121.5 million pound fine like British Airways got. And without the recent price-fixing issues in the press about British Airways and Virgin Atlantic I would never have known that one of the participating parties can be the first one to confess and take advantage of the OFT leniency programme and avoid up to five years in jail and up to 10 percent of worldwide turnover. I bet Martin George wishes he had.

I understand that the Director of Cartel Investigations, Simon Williams at the OFT (020 7211 8117) is waiting to give the sole grand prize to the first one to come forward. Simon can be reached at simon.williams@oft.gsi.gov.uk

Here’s a thought, maybe we should ask Betfred to start a betting line about who will be the first to seek government protection, avoid jail and avoid the loss of up to ten percent of their turnover.

Number 1: And the top reason I love TIX right now is that there is no way that the momentum to fight back for consumers would have developed to where it is right now without the incredibly thoughtful and helpful document, that I now refer to as the burning bush.

That single document, so artistically signed by Martin Prigent (Is that a mountain range?), now serves as a public document of agreement between HSBC, HBOS, RBS Group M&S Money and First Direct. It even clearly spells out the HSBC "minimum divided hurdle rate" that even on face value appears to completely against the FSA cornerstone of treating customers fairly. 

Bless you TIX.

XOXOXO