‘Experience’: Jon Sullivan of Yield Gallery
An art investment firm linked to a convicted fraudster is facing a High Court winding-up petition following investigations by The Mail on Sunday and the Insolvency Service.
Yield Gallery Limited has galleries in Soho and Blackheath, London, and has announced plans to expand into Dubai. Creative director Jon Sullivan says: “With our expertise, we can advise, educate and help inspire new collectors and art enthusiasts seeking financial security.”
But last October, I revealed that Sullivan was previously known as Jonothan Piper. And under his old name, he was jailed for five and a half years in 2016 after pleading guilty to charges of fraud, money laundering and tax evasion. Piper ran Embassy Wine UK Limited, which marketed vintage wine as an investment, but he defrauded customers out of £300,000. Piper was also banned from acting as a director of the company for 11 years, but under his new name he had illegally formed two companies, an art retail business called YG Group Holdings and a financial intermediation firm, Jerry Peggy Limited.
Yield Gallery also hired as a salesman another disqualified director, Anthony Allen, who has been banned from running any company until 2031, after running Global Neutral Limited, a fraudulent company that marketed carbon credit investments.
A date has not yet been set for the High Court to hear the winding-up petition and the Insolvency Service declined to comment. However, Yield Gallery’s lawyers said: “It intends to vigorously contest the petition.”