Ingenious Securities, the broking arm of advisory group Ingenious Media run by former Bridgewell chief executive Bob Benton, has shut down as a results of "the severe deterioration in financial markets since its launch”.

In a statement released today, Ingenious Media, an advisory boutique for investors in the media industry, confirmed that its securities business had closed. It added: “…given the significant losses incurred during this start-up phase and the extremely uncertain outlook for any meaningful recovery in financial markets, it has been decided to close the business.”