News Notes: UK Shutters Cask Investment Firm, Community-Owned Scotch Distillery Seeks Funding

Cask Spirits Global Shuttered Following Fraud Investigation

London-based whisky investment company Cask Spirits Global has been forced to close by the UK government following an official inquiry into its dealings. The investigation uncovered over a dozen customers who paid nearly £100,000 ($136,000) for whisky casks that they never legally owned—including some who purchased casks that never existed. “Our investigations identified serious concerns about the way Cask Spirits Global Limited was run and the harm caused to customers who invested in good faith,” said chief investigator Mark George at the UK Insolvency Service in a statement. “Despite claiming to have stopped trading, the company appeared to still be active and posed an ongoing risk to the public. We will not hesitate to act where a company cannot be trusted with people’s money.” The company is now slated for liquidation, which will be overseen by a receiver.

GlenWyvis Seeks Outside Funding as Closure Looms

Facing financial troubles and industry headwinds, community-owned Highland distillery GlenWyvis now has an uncertain future. According to reporting from The Spirits Business, director David Graham confirmed the distillery needs a multi-million-dollar investment by 2028 to keep its doors open. Graham pointed to rising costs, falling consumer demand, and legal costs associated with a lawsuit between the distillery and its landlord. Earlier this year, GlenWyvis received £500,000 (around $683,000) from a social investment fund to support job growth and production, but it seems that figure fell short of what the distillery required. When it began producing in 2018, GlenWyvis became renowned for being the only scotch whisky distillery to be 100% self-sustaining in terms of its energy needs, generating all its power from its own wind, solar and hydroelectric sources. Other scotch whisky makers have since joined the self-sustaining category, including Ardnamurchan and Nc'nean.