The Serious Fraud Office has ratcheted up its investigation into the collapse of BHS by contacting former senior management and administrators asking for documents dating back 13 months before the chain collapsed.
The SFO is currently exploring whether to launch a formal investigation into the collapse of the chain and what role former owner Dominic Chappell’s consortium played in its demise.

The Insolvency Service and the Pensions Regulator is already looking into the BHS failure, which left a £570 million hole in the company’s pension funds.

“The SFO confirms it is reviewing material in its possession,” a spokesperson told the Guardian.

“If the director considers there are reasonable grounds to suspect serious or complex fraud which meets his criteria, he will open a criminal investigation.”