Sucden Financial Limited v TMT Metals AG & Ors

Facts

Sucden Financial Limited, an English derivatives and commodities broker, provided TMT Metals AG, a Swiss metal trader, with a futures and options trading facility governed by English law. When TMT failed to meet margin calls in March 2022, TMT and its sole director, Mr Prateek Gupta, offered a bill of lading said to cover cargoes of nickel cathodes as security, and Sucden alleges that Mr Gupta and TMT represented, including at a meeting in London on 22 June 2022 between Mr Gupta and Sucden's chief executive, that the bill genuinely covered nickel. In reliance, Sucden forbore from enforcing TMT's debt and entered into a Letter Agreement and, later, a Memorandum of Deposit pledging the bill as security. When Sucden sought to realise the security after TMT's default, the containers were found to contain only low-value metal composite. Sucden's proceedings, issued in August 2023 against TMT, Mr Gupta and the shipper, Mine Craft Limited, claimed the debt and alleged deceit, fraudulent misrepresentation and unlawful means conspiracy against Mr Gupta, contending its ability to recover the debt deteriorated during a period of fraudulently induced forbearance. Bright J gave permission to serve Mr Gupta out of the jurisdiction. Mr Gupta applied to set that aside; Robin Knowles J dismissed the application, holding the claim fell within the Tort Damage Gateway. Mr Gupta appealed with permission from Phillips LJ.