‘NZ’s Donald Trump’: Embattled director claims ‘glorious punch-up’ while $45m remains at risk
Thursday, 29 January 2026
With more than $45m hanging in the balance, controversial investment firm head Bernard Whimp is calling for his “soldiers and soldieresses” to come back to work on reduced pay, while investors worry if they will ever see their money again. Jake Kenny reports.
A controversial investment director is styling himself “NZ’s Donald Trump” and calling for his employees to return to work on reduced pay, while investors who handed over millions to his firm wait to see if their money will ever be returned.
Bernard Whimp is the man behind the Chance Voight group - 27 companies under the same umbrella that purport to earn returns on investments from ordinary people. Six of the companies were placed into interim liquidation by the High Court late last year.
The Financial Market Authority (FMA) applied for the liquidations as it investigated Chance Voight, Whimp and associated entities. The probe relates to concerns around poorly kept books and potential insolvent trading.
Stuff previously reported that Chance Voight had received about $45m from more than 100 investors over the past four years, many of whom are elderly. Two investors have since told Stuff they handed over huge chunks of their life savings and have little faith in getting it back.
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Meanwhile, Whimp this week has made a call to action to his 44 former employees to return to work on reduced pay. In the email, seen by Stuff, he styles himself as “NZ’s Donald Trump” and says he is in a “most glorious punch up” with the FMA.
“Calling all former Chance Voight soldiers and soldieresses,” the email reads. “You are invited to report for duty - it’s time to get back to work.
“Employment terms, conditions and pay to be negotiated, you won’t be getting what you used to get. You will get the usual fun and good times and the Chance Voight spirit.”
The email says the outcome of the ongoing battle is likely to be unknown for some time.
“For what it is worth I am fairly sure that neither I nor Chance Voight have done anything wrong,” Whimp says, adding that six people have already been rehired and are “stacking up wins every day”.
“We will not stop for the FMA, the moaners and groaners throughout the land, the socialists, the hand ringers, the bed wetters, or other assorted losers and armchair experts of anyone else of this ilk.
“I am enjoying my elevation to NZ’s ‘Donald Trump’. It is considerable fun.”
Andrew, 63, who did not want his surname used, said he invested roughly a third of his life savings ($80,000) into Chance Voight in March 2024.
“All those messages from Whimp, asking for money to help with the fight and pay for legal fees. It stinks.
“I looked him up at the time and saw his chequered record. It raised some red flags. But they were setting up a fund in Australia, they had slick brochures. I was a fool to be sucked in.”
Andrew said when he was thinking of investing, a young lady came out to meet him in a brand new BMW station wagon. He claimed she told him that his investment would be secured against mortgages, which gave him confidence that it would be relatively safe.
He said he intended to be there when Whimp and the FMA go toe to toe in court.
“He needs to know we’re real people. It’s our money. We’ve saved all our lives for it.”
Another 63-year-old man from Wellington, who did not want to be named, said the return on his $200,000 investment was due in full with interest five days after the Chance Voight companies were placed into interim liquidation just before Christmas.
“I know it was risky,” he told Stuff. “But being a part of mortgage finance I thought would make it safe. An 11% return on our investment sounded realistic.
“I always like to give everyone a fair go. They had 44 staff which also seemed legit.”
There were red flags, the man said, including when Chance Voight staff were calling him late last year seeking more funds to contribute to share market investments.
“I didn’t do enough research. I usually would. They weren’t pushy either so I went for it.”
Malcolm Hollis, John Fisk and Lara Bennett of PwC have been appointed interim liquidators and provided a state of affairs of the Chance Voight group to the High Court on Monday. They have been contacting investors and liaising with Whimp directly.
A High Court hearing is expected to be heard in February. The FMA will be seeking full liquidations of the six Chance Voight companies. It is understood that liquidating the remaining 21 companies within the group may be sought.
Whimp previously signalled he would fight the FMA in court. He declined to comment when contacted by Stuff on Wednesday.
The embattled director previously rejected all of the allegations against Chance Voight, saying he’s the victim of an “appalling miscarriage of justice”.
Since the interim liquidations Whimp has emailed investors asking for donations to contribute towards legal fees in his fight against the FMA. Stuff has seen those emails.
The High Court has temporarily barred him from moving any assets overseas while the FMA investigation is ongoing, according to court documents.
In a judgment issued late last year placing six Chance Voight companies into liquidation, Associate Judge Dale Lester said: “I am satisfied that there is reason to believe that there have been serious and persistent breaches of the [Companies Act] by the group. The situation is quite unsatisfactory for companies raising money from the public.”
It is not Whimp’s first run-in with the financial watchdog, or the courts.
The former bankrupt has convictions for burglary, removing documents of a company in liquidation and failing to comply with a liquidator’s notice, according to a 2009 Supreme Court appeal judgment obtained by Stuff. He unsuccessfully sought leave to appeal the convictions.
The incident occurred after one of Whimp’s companies was placed into liquidation, according to the judgment. He was required to leave the premises, but returned that evening and removed property belonging to it. He was found guilty of the three charges by a jury after a trial.
Companies Office records show Whimp was banned from acting as a director from September 2007 to September 2012.
He came under the Securities Commission’s spotlight in 2010 when he started making offers for shares below their listed prices in various companies, many of them trading on the New Zealand Stock Exchange (NZX) for considerably higher prices.
The actions were later found by the High Court to be “misleading and deceptive” designed to “catch some smaller shareholders off guard”. Injunctions were granted preventing Whimp from receiving the shares. Stricter regulations were introduced the following year.
Whimp founded Chance Voight in 2021.
He was raised in Christchurch and is currently based in Rangiora.
The FMA has been approached for comment.