Architects of Wine

British Virgin Islands domiciled Venulum Ltd., which claims to be part of a "private wealth management" group that specializes in "alternative investments" and has mutual funds domiciled in the BVI, Cayman Islands and Delaware, is suing the as yet unknown

Barclays Bank Plc in the United Kingdom has been held liable for damages suffered by investors in a wine-based, offshore investment scam for which the bank provided services.Summary judgment against the bank and in favor of claimant Cayman Islands-registered Architects of Wine Ltd. (in liquidation) was entered at the U. K. High Court on June 16, 2006.

Barclays Bank continued processing checks for an offshore-based wine investment group even after it learned of a regulatory warning in the U. S. and then then refused to co-operate with the group's liquidator after it collapsed amid allegations of fraud, it has been claimed.The allegations are contained in a civil complaint filed by Christopher Johnson, as liquidator of Cayman Islands-registered Architects of Wine Ltd., at the U. K. High Court of Justice, Queen's Bench Division, Commercial Court on March 9, 2006. AOWL is seeking to recover $1.3 million from sole defendant Barclays Bank, of London, England, alleging conversion.

Four current or former employees of Cayman Islands-based Caledonian Bank and Trust Limited are potential targets for legal action concerning the failure of a wine-based investment scheme.First, however, liquidator Christopher Johnson needs to raise money to fund any litigation and he intends to seek court permission to sell 285,717 bottles of wine - valued at €1,856,055 (US$2.4 million) - that are stored in a warehouse in Switzerland.

Two new lawsuits have been filed in the United States by investors in a wine-based investment scheme operated from the Cayman Islands, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The plaintiffs claim to have lost more than $1.5 million in Architects of Wine and related parties after being induced to invest by promises of high returns and liquidity that never materialized. Instead, they claim their funds were misappropriated.

A controversial wine based investment firm appears to have abandoned the Cayman Islands in the wake of Hurricane Ivan - allegedly leaving behind substantial debts.Architects of Wine Ltd. closed down its Grand Cayman office in September, owing rent and several