FCA charges City lawyer with insider dealing over maternity brand acquisition
The financial watchdog has charged a City lawyer with five counts of alleged insider dealing for trading in the assets of maternity fashion brand Seraphine Group using confidential information he gained while working on the company’s acquisition.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said Richard Bloomfield, 38, worked on an acquisition of the City-based maternity clothing company and alleged that he used inside information he obtained through his role to buy and sell shares in the Seraphine Group on the stock market on five occasions between 28 March 2022 and 10 January 2023.
The watchdog confirmed that Bloomfield appeared before Westminster Magistrates’ Court and he gave no indication of a plea. Bloomfield has been released on unconditional bail.
The case has been sent to Southwark Crown Court, where his next appearance is scheduled for 5 August 2026.
Bloomfield, an M&A lawyer, qualified in 2012 at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, where he remained until 2016, when he moved to Bird & Bird as a senior associate. He went on to join US law firm Goodwin Procter before leaving earlier this year to become chief legal officer and general counsel at LegalTech firm SuLe.
The FCA added that it is not investigating the law firm or Seraphine Group.
The regulator told Morning Wire that, as this is an ongoing criminal proceeding, it would not be appropriate for the FCA to comment further while such criminal proceedings are active.
“We are aware of the charges against our former employee. There are no allegations of wrongdoing by the firm, and we are not a subject of the FCA’s investigation. The firm has cooperated fully with the FCA and will not be commenting further at this time given the pending criminal proceedings,” a spokesperson for Goodwin said in a statement.
Morning Wire has contacted SuLe for a comment.
Seraphine’s stock market bumps
The company first debuted on the London Stock Exchange in 2021 using an Initial Public Offering (IPO) with ‘BUMP’ as its stock market ticker, and building on its reputation as a favourite of Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, the shares hit a high of 300p, giving Seraphine a valuation of around £150m.
The company initially raised £56m from investors, but then immediately crashed.
However, in 2022, Seraphine’s shares plunged by almost 40 per cent following a gloomy forecast noting “a number of margin and costs challenges”, particularly in relation to distribution and customer acquisition marketing.
By late 2022, the share price had collapsed by over 90 per cent, trading near 10p, prompting private equity firm Mayfair Equity Partners – who originally backed Seraphine – to swoop in and buy out the original investors, agreeing to buy the company for £15m and take it private again.
Despite being taken off the stock market, the company fell into administration just two years later in 2025, appointing administrators from Interpath Advisory.
At the end of 2025, retail giant Next stepped in and bought the maternity clothing company out of administration, paying just £500,000 to acquire Seraphine’s brand name and intellectual property, and it now operates under Next’s ownership.