By Terence Dooley
ITV’s return to boxing was dealt a potential body blow earlier this month when the Heron Tower-based offices of CWM (Capital World Markets), the sponsors of Carl Frampton’s recent IBF title defence against Chris Avalos, were raided as part of a fraud squad investigation into a managed fund that promised investors a five percent monthly return.
CWM FX had sponsorship deals with Barry McGuigan and other sporting outfits. They were also Chelsea’s online forex trading partner, but the Premiership club have now terminated their contract with the firm. However, the decision was made due to CWM’s failure to satisfy certain requirements, according to a news report published in City A.M. earlier today.
The offices were raided on March 3rd. Thirteen arrests were made. Anthony Constantinou, the company’s chief executive, was one of the people taken into custody on charges of suspicion of fraud and money laundering.
As per Financial Conduct Authority rules, CWM have temporarily closed down their website. They have also released a statement clarifying their position:
'There is no sustainable basis for these allegations. CWM believe that they have been the victim of an orchestrated campaign initiated by individuals motivated by personal animosity. CWM understands from third parties that clients have received calls from an individual; the purpose of the calls appears to have been to raise doubt about CWM as a business. Despite requests made of the police, they have thus far failed to provide the name of a single investor who has raised concerns with them.
'CWM have made an offer to the City of London Police to ring fence funds, additional to those invested, to underwrite investors' protection and allay any genuine concerns. CWM World is a respected group of companies with a multi-million pound turnover, operating with dozens of partners in a number of countries. There is no sustainable basis for these allegations and we will continue to operate as a premier brand.'
“The primary objective of the arrest phase of this investigation was to stop what we believe was ongoing criminality and prevent people putting their money into CWM's managed funds offering 5% interest per month,” stated Detective Superintendent Maria Woodall when speaking to the International Business Times U.K. about the arrests.
The company signed marketing deals across a number of sports, not just football and boxing, as part of a publicity drive, inking deals with Wigan Warriors, the London Boat Show, and motor racing teams.
ITV’s return to the sport was a big, feel-good story for the sport. The Frampton-Avalos fight brought in a peak of 768,000 in Ireland (311,000 for UTV Ireland and 457,000 for NI UTV) and peaked at 1.9 million on ITV—further prove that there is still a sizeable boxing audience out there for potential sponsors.
The news comes hot on the heels of reports that McGuigan is discussing the possibility of making a fight between Frampton and WBA World title-holder Scott Quigg. Eddie Hearn, who represents Quigg, is keen to get the ball rolling on the fight. Frampton’s popularity is a big negotiating tool, but Quigg has the backing of Sky, ITV would have to dig deep to net the fight.
The troubles experienced by CWM FX could hinder boxing’s return to ITV, but McGuigan is a legend in the sport so it is feasible that he could pull in another big sponsor to help secure the big backing needed to keep the sport on the free-to-air channel and nail down the fight with Quigg.
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