Since the middle of 2013, a group of litigants including contributors to this website have been pursuing Mr. Hick and Globalfx via legal channels. The claimants were advised that given Globalfx was selling financial products to persons in the U.K., Mr Hick’s operation, though technically based abroad, comes under the jurisdiction of UK law; thus a claim was issued for the group accordingly towards the end of 2013.

On the 4th January 2014, the claimants’ lawyers were advised that the group’s claim had been accepted by the High Court in London and that their Foreign Process Department would forward the papers (translated into German) to the Swiss judicial authorities for service on Globalfx Management Trading Ltd in Zurich in accordance with Swiss law. It is interesting however, that on 28th March 2014, the claimants’ lawyers received notification that the Swiss authorities had failed to serve the documents on Globalfx, Zurich. According to them, the documents were not served because Globalfx’s entry in the Commercial Register of the Canton of Zurich was cancelled on 26th November 2013. However, although the company was no longer registered at the time notice was served in Zurich, there is correspondence from Globalfx dated after 26th November 2013 which still quotes the Zurich telephone number (+41 44 214 6423).

Having hit problems there, the lawyers then served notice on Mr. Hick and Globalfx Management Trading Ltd through the company’s last known address in the British Virgin Islands. The claimants were later advised (in early April) that Globalfx had also been struck off the BVI Companies Register; however under BVI company law Globalfx continues to exist until it is dissolved; and in fact it does appear still to be operating at the present time. Therefore notice could be, and was, served at Globalfx’s last known address in the BVI.

Globalfx Management Trading Ltd had 31 days in which to respond to the notice, but none was received within that time. A court hearing was then applied for by the litigants to obtain a judgment on the claim and this took place on Friday 3 October, 2014 in the Commercial Court in London. Its decision: The Court decided fully in favour of the group (13 claimants in total) with the exception of a reduction on the interest claimed by the litigants on unpaid accounts from 8 to 4%. This means that GlobalFx are now required in UK law to repay fully the capital and profits of the claimants. During the course of last year, David Hick unexpectedly introduced very high levels of commission on profits, as well as claiming losses on open trades which went beyond the maximum stated in our Trading Agreements. These and other considerations, such as the length of time taken to repatriate funds, were ruled unfair and otherwise illegal by the court.