OSC investigates Bridging and former senior executives for allegedly mismanaging funds and failing to disclose disputes
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The CEO of a $ 1.7 billion Canadian private lender closed his personal bank account just days after being questioned by investigators about receiving undisclosed payments from a client, court documents show.
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David Sharpe, the former CEO of Bridging Finance Inc., closed a personal checking account at Bank of Montreal four business days after the Ontario Securities Commission questioned him about his relationship with Sean McCoshen, a Canadian entrepreneur who proposed Alaska Railroad.
McCoshen’s companies have borrowed more than $ 100 million from funds managed by Bridging. During the same period, a numbered company controlled by McCoshen transferred $ 19.5 million to Sharpe’s personal account, the OSC alleged. Payments took place between July 2016 and June 2019.
In fact, six payments worth $ 17.2 million were transferred to Sharpe within five business days of the advance of funds from Bridging to the rail project and other businesses linked to McCoshen, according to a new one. document filed by the securities commission in an Ontario court.
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These and other transactions are at the heart of the case, which saw a court appoint PricewaterhouseCoopers to take control of the Toronto-based company, a private lender to small and medium-sized businesses. The OSC is investigating Bridging and former senior executives for allegedly mismanaging funds and failing to disclose conflicts of interest, and has claimed in court documents that Sharpe tried to mislead his investigators.
Through a spokesperson, Sharpe declined to comment. McCoshen could not immediately be reached for comment.
Sharpe was questioned by the securities commission on October 27, 2020 about his relationship with McCoshen. He closed the Bank of Montreal account on November 2. In February, McCoshen dissolved the numbered company that made the transfers, according to court documents.
Sharpe and his wife, Natasha Sharpe, co-founded and ran the business together. They were fired last week by PricewaterhouseCoopers.
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