A dozen more strictly Orthodox charities have been named by the Charity Commission as part of an investigation into more than £20 million of cashed cheques.
In May the regulator announced a statutory class inquiry after an “unannounced visit” by HMRC to a company in Hackney, saying that 105 charities were found to have cashed cheques with the company to a value of £22 million.
It named 10 charities under initial investigation, adding a further 10 in September.
A further 12 named today include Beis Chinuch Lebonos Ltd, which is linked to an independent girls’ school; the Bnei Zion Community Nursery; and the Satmar Kolel (a talmudic academy).
In its statement today, the regulator said the charities had been told not to issue any cheques without its consent.
But it made clear that the opening of an inquiry was “not a finding of wrongdoing”.
It explained that it was looking to “determine the facts around how these charities have transferred funds. It will also investigate how trustees had oversight of what happened to funds exchanged for the cheques, and if this cash has been used properly to support what the charities were set up to do.”
The Commission would “seek to establish how trustees determined that these financial transactions were in their charity’s best interests”.
To get more from community, click here to sign up for our free community newsletter.