Brexit supporter claiming he was bullied out of Goldman Sachs does not exist

If you're a UKIP-voting Brexit supporter, the notion that one of your clan was ejected from the upper levels of Goldman Sachs simply for sharing your views is probably enough to spark outrage. Hold back on the apoplexy, however: it's not true.

Someone calling himself "Dr. Stephen (Steve) Cawford" has taken to both LinkedIn and Twitter to boast about his history as a managing director at Goldman Sachs and to claim that he left the bank as a full time employee after he was asked to vote remain in last July's referendum. "All the staff bullied me there [about voting to leave the EU]," he told us, "but I still did."

We asked Goldman Sachs about Cawford (who still claims to be earning £100k a year working for the firm as an external advisor). It has no record of him. Nor does it have any record of Cawford's alleged ex-Goldman Sachs boss, the curiously named 'Laymore Hattens.'

Cawford also claims to be a member of UKIP (which has no record of him) and to work for a Brexit-inspired asset management firm, 'Asset Management UK', which appears to be soliciting funds but is not registered with the UK Financial Conduct Authority.

We asked both Cawford and Hattens to comment on the apparent inconsistencies in their profiles. A secretary for Hattens said: "Mr Hattens is CEO and founder of Asset Management UK, but they may have put something in someone else's name," and declined to give further details. Cawford said the name Stephen Cawford was not one the FCA would have and that, "I use 'Steve' as a cloak personality to protect my own self from people like you who contact me who I don't know."

Bankers who support Brexit certainly exist, even at Goldman Sachs. There may even be bankers who are aligned to UKIP. 'Stephen Cawford,' however, is not one of them. Nor is 'Laymore Hattens.' Indignation over ostracized Brexiteers in the City can be saved for another day.

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Have a confidential story, tip, or comment you’d like to share? Contact: sbutcher@efinancialcareers.com

Bear with us if you leave a comment at the bottom of this article: all our comments are moderated by actual human beings! Sometimes these humans might be asleep, or away from their desks, so it may take a while for your comment to appear. Eventually it will – unless it’s offensive or libelous (in which case it won’t.)