A precision-engineering company in Essex has accused a Chinese investor of flirting with a takeover — then stealing its intellectual property and withholding the cash it had promised, leaving it on the brink of collapse.
Bosses of Smiths (Harlow), which makes parts for Bombardier and Rolls-Royce, and backer Agathos, a private equity firm, struck an £8m deal with China’s Future Aerospace in October 2017. More than two years on, Future has failed to pay the full amount, citing trouble obtaining approval from its government. Smiths fears it has abandoned the deal and says it is owed £2.5m.
The issues began in May 2018, when Beijing had not yet approved Future’s application to go ahead with the deal. Over the next six months, Smiths signed three