Key facts
- Paul Taylor, a former bidder for Reading FC, has been fined nearly £500,000 and banned from financial services by the FCA.
- Taylor used forged documents purporting to show ownership of bonds worth around €200m (£171m).
- These forged documents were used to support a £37 million takeover bid for a UK bank in 2023 and his bid for Reading FC in 2024.
- Taylor withdrew his bid for Reading FC in November 2024.
- Esmeralda Toni, managing director of Taylor's company Blue Horizon Asset Management, also received a ban and a fine exceeding £120,000.
Paul Taylor, who previously attempted to purchase Reading Football Club, has been fined nearly £500,000 and banned from the financial services industry by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The watchdog found Taylor guilty of using forged documents that falsely claimed he possessed bonds worth approximately €200 million (£171 million).
Taylor attempted to leverage these fabricated documents in 2023 as proof of funds for a £37 million takeover of a UK bank, and again in 2024 for his bid to acquire the financially struggling Reading FC from Dai Yongge. He later informed the FCA that the use of the bogus bond portfolio was an 'expedient' measure to advance negotiations until legitimate funding could be secured.
Taylor ultimately withdrew his offer for Reading FC in November 2024. During Yongge's eight-year ownership, the club faced severe financial difficulties, including points deductions and transfer bans, culminating in Yongge's disqualification as an owner in 2025. This led to the sale of Reading to American businessman Rob Couhig and Todd Trosclair, under whose ownership the club finished 12th in League One last season.
Esmeralda Toni, the managing director of Taylor's company, Blue Horizon Asset Management, also faced sanctions from the FCA. She was banned from financial services and fined over £120,000. Therese Chambers, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, stated that Taylor and Toni "fell woefully short of even this minimum expectation" of honesty required in the financial services industry.