THE returns from Business Expansion Schemes (BES) proved to be mixed over the past 10 years, with many investors still waiting for their initial investment or what is left of it to be recouped from projects that have exceeded their initial five year period.
ICC Bank has recently announced, however, that its first BES Fund, launched in 1990 has achieved a net compound return of 15 per cent per annum (based on the 56 per cent tax rate at that particular time) from monies invested in four different companies.
The companies were Kleenex International, an acrylic merchandising and display unit manufacturer, Largo Food Exports which makes Perri snack foods, the Marine Hotel, Sutton and Sailaway Sailor, which purchased a coastal vessel.
The 185 investors in the ICC scheme put in approximately £6,000 each into this BES project and on average would have received a total return, including capital of about £10,300 of which £3,360 was the tax refund in year one.
A spokesman for ICC told Family Money that its 1991 Tourism BES Fund which is due to be realised later this year is not expected to make such a good return, mainly because of the poorer performance of to of the 10 companies and the slightly lower tax rate which applied at the time.
A £6,000 investment in the 1991 BES is expected to realise a total net return (including capital) of approximately £9,240, he said.
