ECB halts talks as Stanford charged
Updated on 17 February 2009
The England and Wales Cricket Board suspended talks with Sir Allen Stanford after he was charged with an alleged multi-billion dollar fraud.
The Texas billionaire's assets have been frozen as he is probed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The SEC filed a complaint in a Dallas Court against Stanford and three of his companies for "orchestrating a fraudulent, multi-billion dollar investment scheme" relating to an $8 billion (£5.6bn) CD (certificates of deposit) programme.
The commission said it was alleging fraud "of a shocking magnitude" with "tentacles throughout the world".
In light of this, the ECB released a statement saying: "Following allegations made today by the US Securities and Exchange Commission and their decision to apply for a temporary restraining order which was filed in a Dallas / Fort Worth court, the England and Wales Cricket Board and the West Indies Cricket Board have suspended negotiations with Sir Allen Stanford and his financial corporation concerning a new sponsorship deal."
Last summer, the controversial Texan agreed a deal with the ECB over five one-off encounters, to be played annually each November, with $10 million (£7m) in prize money to the winners.
However, the matches were dogged by problems over sponsorship deals struck with the West Indies Cricket Board.
Stanford had been expected to become a major backer of the proposed English Premier League Twenty20 tournament from 2010, but all negotiations are now on hold.
Earlier, US marshals were seen entering the group's Houston headquarters.
Meanwhile, the island of Antigua has been besieged by investors of Stanford International Bank - part of Houston-based Stanford Financial Group which has more than $51 billion (£35.9bn) in assets.
People have travelled from as far away as Colombia in a bid to withdraw their cash from SIB, which has more than 30,000 investors and $8.5 billion (£5.9bn) in assets.
Would-be investors have been told they could generate annual investment returns of between 10 and 15 per cent since 1995 if they invest with Stanford, sources said. His wealth-management unit caters to those with about $5 million (£3.5m) to commit.
In recent weeks, more than 200 employees have been axed at Stanford-related businesses.
Knighted in 2006 by the Antiguan authorities rather than the Queen, Stanford has lived for 20 years in Antigua where he holds dual citizenship and has built a name for developing his Caribbean cricket empire.
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