Investment Scams
BBC expose unregulated investment scam
The BBC has shone a light on a huge investment scheme failure this week in Panorama: The Billion Pound Savings Scandal. The show centres on the failure of unregulated investment scheme Blackmore Bond, which collapsed owing investors over £40m. As per many of these situations, prospective investors were: Nevertheless, the scheme collapsed in April 2020…
Read MoreAre liquidation committees necessary?
Sometimes when a company is wound up via compulsory liquidation or creditors’ voluntary liquidation (CVL) a liquidation committee is formed to monitor the liquidator’s activities and look after creditors’ interests. Without liquidation committees, liquidators could do as they please and put their own interests over those of creditors. The establishment of a committee gives creditors…
Read MoreBeware of the mini-bond market
A mini-bond is a niche type of unregulated investment that you don’t hear about too often. But here at I&L, we like to discuss topics that will help to protect and educate our clients. As a result, mini-bonds is the focus of this post. So what exactly is a mini-bond? Mini-bonds are a form of…
Read MorePolice and financers warn of online bank fraud
Bank customers lost a record £1.3 billion to online scams last year, according to lobby group UK Finance. In 2021, investment fraud accounted for nearly one third of losses, with the promise of high returns enticing potential victims. UK Finance’s Annual Fraud Report notes that scammers are aware that pension freedoms have given over-55s access…
Read MoreFCA and FSCS: “Investors should do more research”
A survey by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) found that many investors avoid doing due diligence because they found the process “complicated” and “time consuming.” According to the results of the study, 42% of Britons aged 18 to 24, who have money in investments, claim their latest investment was…
Read MoreBeware the professional enabler
A lawyer, finance expert, or some other professional who acts as an enabler of an economic crime is referred to as a professional enabler. These are the people who will create, ignore, fail to identify, and purposely facilitate an economic crime or criminal system. In most cases, we only see the ‘face’ of the crime.…
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