Unauthorised firms targeting UK consumers have devised a devious tactic to convince potential investors that they are fully authorised and regulated by providing a link to a fake version of the regulator’s online ‘register’ that looks identical to the real thing.
Last week among its usual slew of warnings over unauthorised firms operating in the UK, the Financial Conduct Authority warned over two firms that were offering links from their website to what appears to be the regulator’s register of authorised firms.
The websites give a six-digit reference number which brings up a record on the the register that would appear to confirm the firm in question is fully authorised and regulated.
At the time of writing, the website listed for one of these firms, Hoden International Clearing, which operates out of Hong Kong, is no longer available online.
The other firm highlighted as engaging this practice by the FCA, Specialist Investor Funds, is still available online. It quotes FCA reference number 573026, which generates a hit on the fake version of the register but not on the official version.
To avoid getting caught out, clients should be told to look out for the following signs of the fake register or records:
• the website address is www.fca-gov.net, rather than the real web address for the register which is www.fsa.gov.uk/register/home.do;
• the page will likely be out of date: at the time of writing the fake register states it was last updated on 17/02/2013; and
• records will not carry all of the information that a genuine record on the real register would: a genuine record has 12 options to drill down further into company specifics, while the fake record for the above firm was a single page titled ‘basic details’.
The FCA said in the alerts: “We strongly advise you to only deal with financial firms that are authorised by us, and check the Financial Services Register to ensure they are. It has information on firms and individuals that are, or have been, regulated by us.
“If a firm does not appear on the Register but claims it does, contact our Consumer Helpline on 0800 111 6768.”
The two warnings were among seven issued last week in total. The other five were against:
• SKJ Capital Partners;
• Glover Capital Group;
• Quinn & Voakes Capital;
• ForexTrada; and
• Steinberg Management.
In its unauthorised firm alerts, the FCA warns consumers “will not be covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or Financial Services Compensation Scheme” if they deal with the companies and “things go wrong”.
