The scandal of software giant iSoft, which had its roots in Birmingham, is still under investigation five years after criminal charges were first brought.

On the fifth anniversary of charges being laid against four former directors of the group, an inquiry by accountancy watchdogs the Financial Reporting Council remains ‘ongoing’.

The council, which has the powers to fine and strike off accountants, has confirmed it is still investigating the conduct of ‘members holding executive or non-executive directorships of iSoft Group PLC in the relevant period’.

The FRC’s confirmation raises the prospect of possible further action over the conduct of the directors, despite the collapse of two trials since charges were brought in January 2010.

The iSoft saga dates back around 20 years and the launch of the software group. The late Roger Dickens, a prominent West Midlands business figure who died in 2006 aged 58, founded iSoft in the mid-1990s.

The Black Country-born businessman was a past president of Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, chairman and founder of Birmingham Forward, UK deputy senior partner with KPMG, chairman of the NEC and chairman of West Bromwich Building Society.

He founded iSoft while part of KPMG along with Patrick Cryne and Stephen Graham, who later faced criminal proceedings along with two other men, former chief executive Timothy Whiston and ex-director John Whelan.

A management buy-out followed in May 1999 and in July 2000 iSoft was floated, raising £16 million. The founders became millionaires and the company was one of the hottest stocks of the UK technology boom in the early years of the last decade.

By February 2002 the IT firm had moved into new 7,000 sq ft offices at Aston Science Park, opened by the Duke of Kent.

Roger Dickens
Roger Dickens

But, by 2006, the company had been forced to call in the Financial Services Authority after its own investigations found evidence of irregularities during the financial years ending April 2004 and 2005.

The revelation forced iSoft, which was worth £1 billion at its stockmarket peak, to restate its accounts by £174 million and led to the resignation of several key executives.

Mr Dickens had already stood down as chairman of the company as he fought an ultimately losing battle against a lengthy illness.

The Aston Science Park office was closed in 2005 and the Birmingham connection was severed further when the firm became part of the IBA Health Group, based in Australia, in October 2007.

In July 2013 the trial of three men accused of misleading investors in iSoft collapsed for a second time.

The Financial Conduct Authority subsequently said it had decided not to pursue a second retrial of Stephen Graham, Timothy Whiston and John Whelan, who had been accused of lying to the market about revenue.

The FCA also said it would not be pursuing the prosecution of former chairman Patrick Cryne, who did not stand trial due to ill-health. The former directors had been charged with conspiring to make misleading financial statements between October 2003 and July 2006 following a seven-year investigation by the FCA.

The first four-month trial ended in a hung jury in August 2012. Then the three-month retrial collapsed in July 2013 when the jury was discharged. Not guilty verdicts were recorded and the defendants received an order for costs.

A spokesman for the Financial Reporting Council said its investigation into iSoft first announced in October 2006 had covered two areas, the auditors and the directors.

In November 2011 accountant Glyn Williams and his former firm RSM Robson Rhodes were fined £15,000 and £225,000 respectively after being found guilty of misconduct relating to iSoft’s accounts.

The spokesman added: “The other part of the investigation was never closed so there was no question of us ‘considering reopening’ it. It is ongoing.”