Big Bus Tours Group Holdings Limited

Reference number: 1026325

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On the register, but not FCA authorised

This firm is registered with the FCA for anti-money-laundering checks only, which is why it appears on the register. That is not authorisation: the FCA does not oversee how it treats customers, and FSCS protection does not apply.

What does this mean?
  • Some businesses are required by law to have an anti-money-laundering supervisor. For this kind of business that supervisor is the FCA, and the registration is the only reason the firm appears on the FCA register.
  • What the FCA checks is narrow: that the firm identifies its customers, keeps records, and reports suspicious activity. It is the anti-crime paperwork behind a bank asking you for ID.
  • It does not check anything about you as a customer. Not whether the firm treats you fairly, not whether it is financially sound, not whether what it sells is any good. The FCA describes firms registered this way as “not authorised or subject to wider FCA regulation”.
  • So if the firm fails or treats you badly, there is no FSCS compensation, and the Financial Ombudsman Service usually cannot look at a complaint about unregulated business.

Website, phone number and address

Compare these against whatever you were given. Scammers clone real firm names and reference numbers but use their own phone number and website, so a detail that does not match the register is the clearest warning sign there is.

  • No website on the FCA register

  • No phone number on the FCA register

  • Address

    110 Buckingham Palace Road, London, SW1W 9SA, United Kingdom

In the full report: 1 background check

  • Who else gives the postcode SW1W 9SA
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Past FCA permissions and consumer protection

  • Money-laundering registration only
    This firm is registered for anti-money-laundering supervision only. It is not FCA-authorised. Money you hand over is not protected by the FSCS, and the Financial Ombudsman Service may not be able to consider a complaint about unregulated business.

FCA disciplinary action and complaints

No FCA disciplinary action.

The Financial Ombudsman Service only publishes complaint figures for firms with 30 or more new complaints in six months, so there are none here for this firm.

Companies House record

The company behind the firm: its status, age, registered office and directors.

Company status
Active
Company type
Private limited company
Incorporated
11 February 2015 (11 years old)
Registered office
110 Buckingham Palace Road, London, SW1W 9SA, United Kingdom
Nature of business
  • Activities of other holding companies not elsewhere classified (SIC 64209)

Directors and company secretaries

Name Role Born Appointed Other companies
Timothy Edward Easingwood Director Jan 1977 11 Feb 2015 52 other companies
James Richard St John Lenane Director Jun 1972 12 Feb 2015 50 other companies
Patrick William Mark Waterman Director Oct 1959 18 Mar 2015 23 other companies
Benedict James Smith Director Jan 1969 1 Feb 2022 152 other companies
Julia Mary Conway Director Jun 1965 28 Mar 2024 None

Other companies run by these 5 directors

A firm is run by people, and their other companies are their track record: what they built, what closed, and anything that failed. It is the check most people never think to make.

other companies
241
closed down
121
went insolvent
9

In the full report: all 241 companies, named

  • What each company does, and whether it is still trading
  • Which of these 5 directors sit on each board, and since when
  • The 9 that went into liquidation or administration
  • The 4 on the FCA register
  • The 23 companies these 5 directors run together
  • All 12 people who have ever been directors, with their dates
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Key dates in its history

Big Bus Tours Group Holdings’s history from the FCA register and Companies House, newest first.

2025

7 March 2025

  • Registered with the FCA

FCA register

2020

7 July 2020

  • Exponent Private Equity Co-Investment GP LLP took control (75–100% of votes)
  • Exponent Private Equity GP Of GP III LLP no longer has significant control
  • Exponent Private Equity Partners GP III, LP gave up control

Companies House

2017

26 June 2017

  • Exponent Private Equity Partners GP III, LP took control (75–100% of votes)

Companies House

2016

6 April 2016

  • Exponent Private Equity GP Of GP III LLP gained significant control
  • Exponent Private Equity LLP took control (75–100% of votes)
  • Merlin Entertainments Group Holdings Limited became a part-owner (25–50% of shares)

Companies House

2015

11 February 2015

  • Incorporated at Companies House

Companies House

In the full report: all 28 events

  • All 28 events in its history (9 shown here)
  • Every director appointment and resignation: 19
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Firms connected to Big Bus Tours Group Holdings

Other FCA-listed firms that share a director, phone number or address with Big Bus Tours Group Holdings. A link shows who the firm is tied to, not whether either can be trusted.

connected firm
1
share a director
1
past links
3

In the full report: the connected firm, named

  • How it is linked: shared directors (1)
  • Who links it to this firm: the named directors, with dates
  • 3 past links through former directors
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Get the full report on Big Bus Tours Group Holdings

Everything on this page, plus everything locked above, in one dated PDF you can keep, file or send on.

  • 241 other companies its directors have run, named
  • 1 background check on its contact details
  • All 28 events in its history
  • 1 connected firm, named, and who links them

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Frequently asked questions about this firm

Is Big Bus Tours Group Holdings Limited FCA authorised?
Big Bus Tours Group Holdings Limited (FRN 1026325) is registered with the FCA under the Money Laundering Regulations only. That is anti-money-laundering supervision, not FCA authorisation, and the FCA does not supervise the firm's conduct.
Is Big Bus Tours Group Holdings a scam or clone?
Big Bus Tours Group Holdings is genuinely on the FCA's money-laundering register, so it is not an outright fake, but registration is not authorisation, and scammers impersonate registered firms too. Verify contact details against the register before sending money.
Is my money safe with Big Bus Tours Group Holdings?
Money you hand to Big Bus Tours Group Holdings is not protected by the FSCS. Money-laundering registration carries no compensation scheme, and the Financial Ombudsman Service may not be able to consider a complaint about unregulated business.
Who owns Big Bus Tours Group Holdings?
Big Bus Tours Group Holdings is owned by Exponent Private Equity Co-Investment GP LLP, which holds 75–100% of votes and can appoint and remove the board, since 7 July 2020. Before that, it was controlled by Exponent Private Equity Partners GP III, LP and Exponent Private Equity GP Of GP III LLP.
Who runs Big Bus Tours Group Holdings?
Companies House lists 5 directors of Big Bus Tours Group Holdings: Timothy Edward Easingwood, James Richard St John Lenane, Patrick William Mark Waterman, Benedict James Smith and Julia Mary Conway.
How long has Big Bus Tours Group Holdings been in business?
The company was formed on 11 February 2015.

Sources and links

The full report on Big Bus Tours Group Holdings Limited

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