Dozens of creditors collectively owed millions of pounds by the defunct City firm Ince & Co LLP have finally been given an indication what they will recoup – and the news is bad for some.

The firm, which was placed into administration at the end of 2018, had been understood to owe around £38m through its three entities: the International LLP, London LLP and Services Limited.

An administrators’ update published this week reveals that claims coming to around £25m have been made to date from a total of 39 unsecured creditors.

In addition, the administrators have also received 29 claims from current and former members of the firm, which are worth almost £16m, as well as a claim of £3.2m from Ince Gordon Dadds Holdings LLP for repayments to the bank for partner capital loans that had been guaranteed by London LLP.

The administrators say a dividend to unsecured creditors is expected, although they are unable to confirm the quantum of any distribution. However, they have made estimates for creditors of each of the three entities.

Those owed money by the London LLP could see a return of 37%, while the return for creditors of Services Limited could exceed 20%. But creditors of the International LLP, who are owed more than £7.5m in total, face an estimated return of just 1.62%.

Ince & Co LLP is now operating under the name Blue Co London LLP. The firm was acquired by Gordon Dadds and has since rebranded as Ince.

The administrators have confirmed that following a review of various documents and records, including management accounts and board papers, there has been no adverse professional ethics and personal conduct reported, and no further investigation is considered proportionate.

Meanwhile, the costs and expenses incurred through the administration look likely to surge well beyond £1m.

Last March, pre-administration costs of £175,000 were approved and paid, include a payment of £123,000 to national firm Pinsent Masons for its legal advice. Further pre-administration costs of £59,000 due to London firm Macfarlanes have not yet been approved.

Between the three entities, joint administrators have drawn more than £400,000 plus VAT in fees and expect to draw further fees up to the original fee estimate of £700,000.

The administration has incurred legal costs of £232,000 to date and solicitor manager costs of £187,000. In total, legal spending is expected to be around £90,000 more than originally estimated.