Decision

Charity Inquiry: The Mahfouz Foundation

Published 5 September 2024

Applies to England and Wales

The charity

The Mahfouz Foundation (‘the charity’) was a charitable trust, governed by a Declaration of Trust dated 26 November 2012. The charity was registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (‘the Commission’) on 27 November 2012.

The charity’s objectives, as set out in its governing document, were:

‘To promote and advance the education of the public in the UK in the history, literature, language, institutions and culture of the Middle East.’

In practice the charity, which was based in London, provided grants to other organisations.

The Commission removed the charity from the Register of Charities (‘the register’) on 6 October 2023 because it had ceased to operate.

The trustees

During the period in which the events referred to in this report occurred, the same two trustees were in office at the charity. These trustees, Craig Nimmo (‘Mr Nimmo’) and Buseif-Hassan Lamlum (‘Mr Lamlum’), are referred to collectively in this report as ‘the trustees’. There were several other trustees preceding this period. Two of the charity’s founding trustees were Michael Wynne-Parker (‘Mr Wynne-Parker’), and Mohammad Marei Mubarak Bin Mahfouz (‘Mr Mahfouz’) -the charity’s patron and principal donor.

Background to the inquiry

In September 2021, the Commission became aware of a series of media articles which suggested potential impropriety in a range of entities, one of which was the charity. The media reports alleged that donations from an individual, Dmitry Leus (‘Mr Leus’), and intended to be received by The King’s Foundation (a charity registered with the Scottish Charity Regulator – SC038770 and formerly known as The Prince’s Foundation)^{[footnote 1]}, were instead paid to The Mahfouz Foundation and that some of these funds were then subsequently transferred elsewhere. The Commission opened assessment cases into the charities that fell under its jurisdiction, and which were allegedly involved in these reported events to explore the concerns raised. One such charity was The Mahfouz Foundation, and another was Children and the Arts (1103747 - a charity registered with the Commission until its removal from the register on 30 September 2022). Whilst the Commission would go on to escalate its regulatory engagement in relation to The Mahfouz Foundation, its assessment case into Children and the Arts did not find that there were regulatory concerns in relation to that charity or the conduct of its trustees.

Issues under investigation

Through its assessment case into the charity, the Commission obtained and assessed information from several sources. The Commission identified that there was cause for serious regulatory concern in relation to the charity because it appeared that the trustees had allowed the charity to be used as a conduit for the transfer of funds that were ultimately intended for others and had not exercised sufficient trustee oversight over the relevant transactions. The Commission also identified that, whilst for financial year ending 5 April 2021 the trustees had declared in their annual return to the Commission the charity’s income and expenditure as being exactly £10,000, there was evidence that the charity’s bank account had been used to receive and spend funds far in excess of this amount.

As a result, on 2 November 2021 the Commission escalated its regulatory engagement by opening a statutory inquiry (‘the inquiry’) under section 46 of the Charities Act 2011 (‘the Act’). The inquiry examined:

• whether funds (defined as payments between 11 May 2020 and 3 September 2020 from accounts in the name of Mr and Mrs Leus) received by the Mahfouz Foundation were intended for it, have been used in accordance with the donors’ intentions and if not whether they should be returned to the donor or otherwise applied for charitable purposes
• the management and administration of the charity by its trustees and whether they have and continue to discharge their legal duties and responsibilities as trustees

The inquiry closed with the publication of this report.

Whilst both The King’s Foundation and Queen Elizabeth Castle of Mey Trust (SC024983) (‘Castle of Mey’) are charities, they are registered with the Scottish Charity Regulator. Actions and decisions of trustees or employees of these entities including those actions and decisions which may be relevant to the events being examined by the inquiry, are outside of the regulatory remit of the Commission. Therefore, the actions and decisions of those parties were examined by the inquiry only to the extent that they informed the inquiry’s understanding of the specific events in question.

The Commission’s remit does not extend to investigating criminal matters; nor is it a prosecuting authority. The inquiry therefore advised Mr Leus that, in the event he considered himself to have been a victim of a crime that he should report this to the police himself.

Findings

The payments between 11 May 2020 and 3 September 2020 from accounts in the name of Mr and Mrs Leus

The funds transferred from Mr and Mrs Leus to the charity

In April 2020, Mr Leus engaged the services of V Advisers Limited. The inquiry was informed that Mr Leus engaged the services of V Advisers Limited in the interests of ‘furthering his philanthropic efforts’. At the time of that engagement V Advisers Limited’s sole director was Volha Havorchanka (‘Ms. Havorchanka’). Mr Wynne-Parker would become a director of V Advisers Limited in October 2020 around the time it changed its name to Introcom Limited. He is also the sole director of another company named Introcom International Limited.

Ms. Havorchanka went on to introduce Mr Leus to Mr Wynne-Parker, who advised Mr Leus to donate to The King’s Foundation. Mr Wynne-Parker provided bank details to Mr Leus for the purposes of making such a donation. However, the bank details provided to Mr Leus by Mr Wynne-Parker were not those of The King’s Foundation but were in fact those of The Mahfouz Foundation. Mr Wynne-Parker confirmed to the inquiry that he knew that the bank details he provided to Mr Leus were not those of The King’s Foundation. Mr Leus has consistently informed the inquiry that he was unaware that the bank account details he received from Mr Wynne-Parker were not those of The King’s Foundation and that he had not heard of The Mahfouz Foundation at the time the donations were made. The inquiry considered that the evidence it obtained supported that account.

On behalf of her husband, Mrs Leus made the following transfers totalling £535,000 to the bank account of The Mahfouz Foundation -acting on her husband’s reasonably held, albeit incorrect belief, that the recipient bank account was that of The King’s Foundation:

• £200,000 on 11 May 2020
• £35,000 on 15 June 2020
• £300,000 on 3 September 2020

The inquiry found that these funds coming into the bank account of the charity were not intended to be donations to The Mahfouz Foundation. Mr Leus’ account to the inquiry was that, of these funds, £500,000 was intended by him for The King’s Foundation and £35,000 (the transfer of 15 June 2020) for Castle of Mey.

Whilst The King’s Foundation is the corporate trustee of Castle of Mey, they are separate legal entities. The inquiry sought to establish why the Leus’s had transferred £35,000 intended for Castle of Mey to an account they believed to be held by The King’s Foundation. Mr Leus informed the inquiry that he assumed that the two charities were connected and that, having received letters of thanks from both charities acknowledging his donations, was thereby assured they had reached the intended destinations.

The trustees of The Mahfouz Foundation informed the inquiry that, by an arrangement made with Mr Wynne-Parker and William Bortrick (‘Mr Bortrick’)^{[footnote 2]} - who was an employee of the charity’s patron - they had agreed to allow the bank account of The Mahfouz Foundation to be used to facilitate receipt and onward donation of funds from Mr Leus. The trustees stated that their own understanding of the purpose behind this indirect routing of funds was that the King’s Foundation preferred large donations to be received by them from a charitable foundation.’ As such, the inquiry found that the trustees allowed other parties to use not only the bank account, but the reputation and charitable status of The Mahfouz Foundation to facilitate the transfer of these funds.

The funds originating from Mr and Mrs Leus transferred onwards

The inquiry established that The Mahfouz Foundation’s bank account was used by other parties to conduct transactions that were not linked to the charity’s activities. This included the £535,000 from Mr Leus which was received from 11 May 2020 to 3 September 2020.

The following series of transactions were key to understanding how the funds donated by Mr Leus were ultimately used:

(a) £100,000 to The King’s Foundation in transfers between 11 and 13 May 2020

(b) £193,730 to Introcom International Limited in transfers between 13 May and 3 September 2020

(c) £35,000 to Mr Bortrick by transfer on 3 September 2020

(d) £100,000 returned from The King’s Foundation to the charity on 24 September 2020

(e) £200,000 to Children and the Arts in transfers on 25 September 2020

(f) £106,270 returned to Mr and Mrs Leus by the trustees of The Mahfouz Foundation on 8 January 2022

It is Mr Leus’ account to the inquiry that, with the exception of (f) above, he was not consulted prior to any transfers of the funds he donated.

The inquiry found that, in relation to the receipts and onward transfers referred to at (a) to (e) above, the trustees completed only minimal due diligence checks to assure themselves of the propriety of the transactions. Mr Nimmo informed the Commission that he saw the charity’s involvement as providing a supporting role in facilitating the transfers. In the case of the transfers to The King’s Foundation, the trustees of the charity relied upon their perception that The King’s Foundation was a larger charity with prestigious patronage.

The inquiry found that the involvement of the trustees in events in connection with Mr Leus’ donations was largely passive in nature. At the time of the transfers in question they had no direct contact with the intended recipient charities or with Mr Leus. Rather, they allowed other parties, who were not trustees of the charity, to arrange the deposit of funds into the charity’s bank account; direct their onward transfer elsewhere and to act as the charity’s representative in liaising with other involved charities on behalf of The Mahfouz Foundation.

Transfers from the charity to The King’s Foundation and Children and the Arts

Of the £200,000 transferred to The Mahfouz Foundation by Mr and Mrs Leus on 11 May 2020, £100,000 was transferred onwards to The King’s Foundation in transfers on 11 and 13 May 2020.  The King’s Foundation initially accepted the £100,000.  Chris Martin (“Mr Martin”), the then Deputy Executive Director of The King’s Foundation, sent Mr Leus a letter of acknowledgement and thanks on 13 May 2020. The letter did not specify the sum received by The King’s Foundation. The King’s Foundation subsequently decided to return the £100,000 and not to accept any further funds from Mr Leus. The £100,000 was returned to The Mahfouz Foundation on 24 September 2020. The inquiry found that the return of these funds to The Mahfouz Foundation, meant that it was clear that the charity intended by Mr Leus as recipient of £500,000 of his donations was unwilling to receive those funds.

By the time the King’s Founation had returned the £100,000, The Mahfouz Foundation had received a total of £500,000 from Mr Leus which he intended to be donated to The King’s Foundation. Once it became clear that the King’s Foundation would not accept Mr Leus’ donation The Mahfouz Foundation should have returned the £500,000 to Mr Leus; or he ought to have been contacted and given an opportunity to specify an alternative application of those funds. However, the inquiry noted that at this time the balance of the bank account of the The Mahfouz Foundation was only £305,909; £193,730 having by this time been transferred to Introcom International Limited.

Mr Bortrick and the then Chief Executive of The King’s Foundation, Michael Fawcett (“Mr Fawcett”), made further arrangement, through correspondence between them on 25 September 2020, that £200,000 of the funds that had been transferred by Mr Leus to the account of The Mahfouz Foundation, would now be transferred to Children and the Arts. Mr Fawcett informed the Inquiry that it was his understanding that Mr Bortrick was in communication with Mr Leus regarding these arrangements at that time.   

The same day, £200,000 of the funds intended by Mr Leus for The King’s Foundation were transferred from The Mahfouz Foundation to Children and the Arts. The inquiry found that this constituted a misapplication of £200,000 of charitable funds which were restricted for use by The King’s Foundation. Whilst there is some degree of similarity between the objects of Children and the Arts and The King’s Foundation, the donor’s intent was that £500,000 of the funds he donated be received and applied by The King’s Foundation in furtherance of its charitable objects. Whilst other parties claimed otherwise, Mr Leus confirmed to the inquiry that he was not consulted regarding the transfers to Children and the Arts before they occurred.

At the time of receipt of these funds, Children and the Arts had commenced the process of winding up its activities. It had insufficient funds to cover outstanding liabilities. The receipt of the £200,000 from The Mahfouz Foundation contributed to Children and the Arts being in a position to settle its liabilities with a surplus amounting to £41,338. In winding up the affairs of Children and the Arts, its trustees transferred this surplus to The King’s Foundation in transfers on 7 May and 1 June 2021. The King’s Foundation confirmed to the inquiry their receipt of these funds from Children and the Arts. The inquiry was informed by the trustees of Children and the Arts that the £200,000 received from the charity was one of several donations received that were used to settle its existing liabilities. Therefore, the surplus that was transferred to The King’s Foundation could not necessarily be considered to be funds originating from Mr Leus.

Transfers to Introcom International Limited

The inquiry sought to establish why £193,730 of the funds from Mr Leus were transferred to Mr Wynne-Parker’s private company -Introcom International Limited. It was Mr Leus’ account to the inquiry that at no time did he consent to funds being diverted from his donations that were intended for receipt by The King’s Foundation and Castle of Mey.

Mr Wynne-Parker and Mrs Havorchanka informed the inquiry that the payments to Introcom International Limited, were commission in relation to the donations from Mr Leus.

The inquiry found that this diversion of charitable funds was improper and occurred at the instigation and to the personal benefit of Mr Wynne-Parker.

It was the charity’s trustees who authorised the transfers from the charity’s bank account to Mr Wynne-Parker’s company. They informed the inquiry that they did so on the instructions of Mr Wynne-Parker and on the understanding that they were payments for expenses agreed between Mr Wynne-Parker and Mr Leus. When questioned by the inquiry about the steps they had taken to satisfy themselves that the payments to Introcom International Limited should be made, the trustees’ account was that they understood Mr Wynne-Parker to be representing Mr Leus and acting in accordance with his wishes; and that they did not doubt Mr Wynne-Parker’s integrity.

The inquiry established that, of the £193,730 transferred to Introcom International Limited, £140,000 was transferred onwards to Ms Havorchanka. Ms Havorchanka informed the inquiry that she subsequently returned £30,000 of these funds to Mr Leus. The inquiry confirmed with Mr Leus his receipt of these funds returned from Ms Havorchanka in transfers between 11 and 20 October 2021.

Transfer to Mr Bortrick and donation of a vehicle to Castle of Mey

The £35,000 from Mr Leus that was transferred to the charity with the intention that it be received by Castle of Mey was subsequently transferred from the charity to Mr Bortrick on 3 September 2020. The inquiry established that Castle of Mey did not receive these funds but rather a donation of goods in lieu and to the value of Mr Leus’ donation.

Mr Bortrick informed the inquiry that he had purchased a Land Rover Discovery (‘the Land Rover’) on 1 November 2019 with the intention that he would subsequently find a sponsor who would be willing to donate the vehicle to Castle of Mey. His intention, as stated to the inquiry, was that the vehicle would then be used by staff at Castle of Mey, and that he had prior discussion with them about an emerging need for a new vehicle to replace an existing one. The inquiry saw evidence that the Land Rover was purchased by Mr Bortrick at a total cost of £35,404.69. Following purchase, and until its subsequent donation, the vehicle was kept by an associate of Mr Bortrick at that individual’s private residence. That individual’s account to the inquiry was that the vehicle was kept by them during this period whilst awaiting its future donation but used minimally, and only as much as was necessary to keep the vehicle in mechanical order during that time.

Mr Bortrick informed the inquiry that, having initially been delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic in finding a willing sponsor in relation to the vehicle, he approached Mr Wynne-Parker to offer Mr Leus the opportunity to have the Land Rover presented to Castle of Mey on his behalf. The inquiry was informed that Mr Bortrick did not have contact with Mr Leus on the matter of the Land Rover, and communication was routed through Mr Wynne-Parker.

The inquiry established that Mr Leus agreed to provide financial support to Castle of Mey and did so by his donation of £35,000 by transfer to the bank account of The Mahfouz Foundation on 15 June 2020. The inquiry did not see evidence that indicated that Mr Leus was aware that his donation of £35,000 intended for receipt by Castle of Mey would in fact be used to reimburse a third party for the purchase of a vehicle which took place some 8 months earlier. On 3 September 2020, the trustees transferred the £35,000 from the bank account of The Mahfouz Foundation to Mr Bortrick for this purpose. The Land Rover was presented to Castle of Mey on or around 31 July 2020. The inquiry saw evidence that Castle of Mey was aware that the donor of the vehicle was Mr Leus.

Mr and Mrs Leus received an acknowledgment from Castle of Mey which thanked them for their donation of £35,000 on 18 June 2020. The inquiry was informed by Castle of Mey that, at the time of writing its acknowledgement on 18 June 2020 to Mr Leus, it had been anticipating the receipt of a monetary donation. For this reason, the acknowledgement received by Mr Leus does not make reference to a vehicle and would not have informed its recipient that his monetary donation had not reached its intended destination; or that it would be substituted by Mr Bortrick for goods to the value of that donation.

The return of funds to their donor

Following the opening of the inquiry, the Commission obtained an undertaking from the trustees that they would not expend funds from the bank account of The Mahfouz Foundation without the Commission’s approval. The inquiry found that any funds of Mr Leus remaining in the account of The Mahfouz Foundation ought to be returned to him. The inquiry oversaw the return of the remaining balance on that account of £106,270 to Mr and Mrs Leus by the trustees on 8 January 2022. Inclusive of the funds returned by Ms Havorchanka, the total refunds returned to Mr Leus is £136,270.

The management and administration of the charity in general

The inquiry examined the books and records of the charity and interviewed its trustees. Through analysis of the information obtained, it identified extensive further examples of the trustees allowing the charity’s bank account to be used for the receipt and expenditure of funds not intended for the charity; and where such receipt and expenditure did not further the charity’s objects.

The trustees allowed the charity’s bank account to be used for the receipt and expenditure of funds from Mr Mahfouz, the charity’s founder and patron, for the furtherance of his personal interests. The outcome of this arrangement is that the majority of transactions in the charity’s bank account, which amount to considerable sums of non-charitable funds, are connected to the private interests, philanthropic or otherwise, of its patron. The inquiry could identify no discernible benefit to the charity as this activity appears to have only served the interests of the charity’s patron, and those working on his behalf.

This arrangement meant that the income and expenditure of funds belonging to the charity represented the minority of activity in the charity’s bank account. During the financial years ending 5 April 2017 to 5 April 2021, the charity received for its own application £10,000 each year from Mr Mahfouz. The inquiry’s understanding is that these funds were intended by him as donor to be applied by the charity’s trustees in furtherance of its charitable objectives.

The inquiry examined how the £10,000 donated annually by Mr Mahfouz to the charity during a 4-year period (financial year ending 5 April 2018 to financial year ending 5 April 2021) was applied by the trustees. The inquiry found that a total of £39,581.67 of those funds (out of a total received by the charity of £40,000) were misapplied by the trustees during those financial years. The misapplied funds were transferred to other entities, some of which were charities. However, even where the recipient was a charity, the objects of those charities were not compatible with those of The Mahfouz Foundation. Therefore, the funds in question could not be considered to have been applied in furtherance of the objects of the Mahfouz Foundation. Whilst the charity’s governing document permits its trustees to support other charities, this power is limited to support which advances the specific objects of The Mahfouz Foundation.

The inquiry did not find evidence that the trustees had personally benefitted in any way from the misapplications. However, the inquiry considered that the misapplication was still serious and resulted in considerable loss of charitable funds. Factoring in the financial year preceding the inquiry’s in-depth analysis, the total sum of charitable funds misapplied was calculated to be £49,581.67. Both trustees complied and cooperated as fully as possible with the Commission throughout the inquiry. The inquiry provided the trustees with an opportunity to remedy the losses the charity had suffered. They promptly agreed to repay the £49,581.67 of misapplied funds and a repayment schedule was agreed between them and the inquiry. The inquiry made an order under section 76(3)(c) of the Act that requires the trustees to make the agreed remedial repayments to the Official Custodian for Charities. This will mean that, whilst the charity is no longer in existence, the funds recovered can subsequently be properly applied, through further intervention from the Commission, to a charity or charities with similar objects to The Mahfouz Foundation.

Conclusions

The lack of control exercised by the trustees over the charity’s bank account and in allowing Mr Bortrick, who is not a trustee, to represent the charity in its dealings with other entities exposed the charity to risk. That risk would later materialise into reputational harm once the charity’s connection to these events was reported in national news outlets. The risk which the trustees exposed the charity to was also entirely undue in that it was not accompanied by any potential benefit for the charity. Allowing the charity’s bank account to be used as a conduit in no way furthered, or had any potential to further, the charitable objects of The Mahfouz Foundation. The lack of control by the trustees over the bank account, and consequentially the financial affairs and reputation of the charity, amounted to misconduct and/or mismanagement in the administration of the charity by its trustees

The inquiry considers that the misapplication of funds of The Mahfouz Foundation by its trustees amounted to a breach of their duty to apply the charity’s funds solely in furtherance of its specific charitable objects. The trustees cooperated fully with the inquiry and promptly agreed to repay the misapplied sum.

The inquiry considered the trustees’ conduct in its entirety in these matters and on 5 October 2023 issued them with an Official Warning under section 75A(1)(a) of the Act.

The inquiry considered the conduct of other persons involved in the events referred to in this report. The evidence obtained in relation to the conduct of Mr Wynne-Parker contributed to a conclusion that he was unfit to be a charity trustee. As such, the Commission disqualified Mr Wynne-Parker from being a trustee or holding a senior management function at a charity for a period of 12 years.  

Regulatory actions

The inquiry took the following regulatory actions:

• used information gathering powers under section 47 of the Act to direct a number of individuals and entities to provide information to the inquiry
• used information sharing powers under section 54 and 56 of the Act to receive from and refer information to other agencies and regulatory bodies. This included the referral of information by the inquiry to the Metropolitan Police Service. A criminal investigation, which included events connected with matters referenced in this report, concluded with a ‘no further action’ decision which was announced in a public statement by the Metropolitan Police Service on 21 August 2023
• oversaw the return of £106,270 to Mr and Mrs Leus by the trustees
• met with the trustees and inspected the books and records of the charity
• agreed a schedule of remedial payments with the trustees in relation to the misapplied funds of the charity
• used its protective power under s.76(3)(c) of the Act to make an order requiring that the remedial payments from the trustees were to be repaid to the Official Custodian for Charites. The Official Custodian for Charities will ensure that the funds recovered are applied to a charity with the same or similar of objects to The Mahfouz Foundation
• issued an Official Warning under section 75A(1)(a) of the Act to the trustees
• made on order on 29 January 2024, which disqualified Mr Wynne-Parker from being a trustee or holding a senior management function at a charity for a period of 12 years using powers under section 181A of the Act. In compliance with section 182 of the Act, Mr Wynne-Parker has been added to the Register of Removed Trustees
• the inquiry considered disqualifying Mr Bortrick. However, the Commission  had disqualified him from being a trustee or holding a senior management function at a charity for a period of 12 years, commencing on 16 February 2024, in relation to his conduct as trustee of Burke’s Peerage Foundation (registered charity 1145658). In compliance with section 182 of the Act, Mr Bortrick has been added to the Register of Removed Trustees
• removed the charity from the register in accordance with section 34(1)(b) of the Act because it had ceased to operate

Issues for the wider sector

Trustees must ensure that their charity has adequate controls in place in relation to their charity’s bank accounts. Bank accounts of the charity are assets of the charity which are to be used solely for charitable purposes. Where trustees fail to exercise a proper degree of control over a charity’s bank account or allow it to be used for the furtherance of personal interests, the Commission may consider this to be misconduct and/or mismanagement in the administration of the charity.

The Commission has produced guidance to assist trustees in implementing robust internal financial controls that are appropriate to their charity. Internal Financial Controls for Charities (CC8) is available on the Commission’s website.

It is the fundamental duty of all charity trustees to protect the property of their charity and to secure its application solely in the furtherance of the objects of the charity.

Annex: A timeline summarising key events in relation to the Leus donations

Date	Event
1 November 2019	Mr Bortrick acquires Land Rover Discovery Sport at a total cost of £35,404.69
April 2020	Mr Leus engages services of V Advisers Limited
11 May 2020	Mrs Leus transfers £200,000 to The Mahfouz Foundation intended for The King’s Foundation
11-13 May 2020	£100,000 of the Leus donations transferred from The Mahfouz Foundation to The King’s Foundation in several transfers
13 May 2020	Mr Leus is sent letter of thanks from Mr Martin the then Deputy Executive Director of The King’s Foundation
13 May – 3 September 2020	At the request of Mr Wynne-Parker, £193,730 of the Leus donations transferred from The Mahfouz Foundation to Introcom International Limited in several transfers
15 June 2020	Mrs Leus transfers £35,000 to The Mahfouz Foundation intended for Castle of Mey.
18 June 2020	Castle of Mey sends letter of thanks to Mr Leus regarding a monetary donation of £35,000
31 July 2020	Castle of Mey receives Land Rover on or around 31 July 2020
3 September 2020	The £35,000 transferred by Mrs Leus on 15 June transferred onwards from The Mahfouz Foundation to Mr Bortrick to reimburse him for the Land Rover
3 September 2020	Mrs Leus transfers £300,000 to The Mahfouz Foundation intended for The King’s Foundation
24 September 2020	£100,000 of the Leus donations are returned by The King’s Foundation to The Mahfouz Foundation
25 September 2020	Arrangement made between Mr Bortrick and the then CEO of The King’s Foundation, Mr Fawcett, that the £100,000 rejected and returned by The King’s Foundation, plus a further £100,000 of the Leus donations, be diverted to Children and the Arts. The transfer takes place the same day
23-26 October 2020	Mr Wynne-Parker becomes a director of V Advisers Limited and the company changes its name to Introcom Limited
September 2021	Media articles published. The Commission opens assessment case into The Mahfouz Foundation
11-20 October 2021	Mr Leus receives return of £30,000 from Ms Havorchanka in several transfers
2 November 2021	Statutory inquiry opened into The Mahfouz Foundation
8 January 2022	£106,270 of the Leus donations are returned to them in a transfer from The Mahfouz Foundation

1. On 13 December 2023 the name of The Prince’s Foundation changed to ‘The King’s Foundation’ ↩

2. Mr Bortrick was a trustee of the former charity Burke’s Peerage Foundation – 1145658. Burke’s Peerage Foundation is the subject of a separate statutory inquiry by the Commission ↩