High Court hears BISL alleges £6.3m bonus tied to secret move to rival Corinthia

Barings Investment Services Ltd (BISL) has brought a High Court claim alleging former private equity banker Adam Wheeler orchestrated a covert move to a rival firm, Corinthia, and that a total of £6,306,198 in discretionary bonuses was paid to Wheeler and 12 departing colleagues the day after the second round of bonuses was awarded. The resignations followed the bonus payments on Feb. 22 to March 7, 2024, with the staff leaving on March 8, 2024. BISL says Wheeler, who led a large team within Barings’ Global Private Finance group, acted to conceal his plans and to benefit Corinthia rather than BISL.

Wheeler earned more than £20 million over his tenure with Barings, including more than £4 million in 2023, according to BISL’s court filings. At the time, he was co-head of Barings’ Global Private Finance (GPF) Group, with a base salary of £325,000 plus discretionary bonuses. BISL contends that Wheeler helped establish Corinthia while coordinating a mass resignation, with the aim of shifting assets and personnel to the rival firm. The company maintains that Wheeler’s actions created a conflict of interest and breached contractual duties.

The case outlines a timeline in which Wheeler began recruiting for Corinthia well before the 2024 resignations. BISL alleges that on May 13, 2023, Wheeler introduced Kelsey Tucker, former Global Head of Operations at Barings, to Paul Weightman, Corinthia’s Executive Chairman, and that his recruitment activity intensified in the following months. The file notes that Wheeler and 12 other BISL employees submitted notices of resignation on March 8, 2024, the day after receiving the second discretionary bonus payment. BISL asserts that Wheeler had accepted a senior role with Corinthia and, it is inferred, held shares or equity options, with knowledge that Corinthia was recruiting GPF Group personnel for a competing business.

In defending himself, Wheeler told the court that BISL was better off for not terminating the contracts of high-performing employees earlier, and he sought to have BISL’s claim dismissed. BISL has rejected a proposal to suspend the English proceedings while a related US case proceeds, arguing that the English case should not be hindered. Mr. Justice Thomas Linden rejected Wheeler’s bid to throw out the claim, and the High Court case continues with BISL seeking financial remedies for what it describes as deliberate concealment and a breach of contract. The latest procedural posture leaves the dispute unresolved, with both sides preparing for further litigation.”