Beware Farage’s ‘advice’

But when that politician makes outrageous claims about financial services, then maybe we should take notice. Especially when he claims that “the financial industry doesn’t care about the man on the street”.

Further, the politician concerned says: “The financial services industry has done a bad job with other people’s money and I want to help find a better way.” In short, this politician is claiming to want to take on the establishment and give people a better deal.

His patter is very similar to that which he has used throughout his political career

It is the kind of thing we have heard from Nigel Farage for years – for it is he who has made these claims – but now he’s turned his attention away from Europe and onto people’s finances, with a daily newsletter offering tips and ‘insight’ into the financial sector.

Unsurprisingly his patter is very similar to that which he has used throughout his political career.

“I am not afraid to take on this new fight on your behalf. I will say what needs to be said (and I don’t care if the woke media attack me for it),” he tells prospective customers.

I use the words ‘customers’ because, let’s be absolutely clear about this, Mr Farage is not taking on the financial services industry, he is simply trying to flog alternative investment tips.

Seasoned professionals will have seen this again and again over the years as all sorts of folk have made outrageous claims to be able to help people make a fortune.

The schemes usually involve unsuspecting punters being encouraged or tricked into sending cash to smooth-talking salespeople who promise them all sorts of unlikely profits from get-rich-quick schemes.

‘It’s the secret that finance experts want to keep to themselves,’ is often the enticing claim. But when victims send their cash, they are usually told about the latest dodgy investment schemes.

So what is different about Mr Farage’s offer? As he says himself: “I have 40 years of experience in finance and politics. I have deep-rooted contacts that provide me with intelligence and a unique perspective.”

He is certainly a persuasive man, even though he never persuaded voters to back him in the seven times he stood for election as an MP. But he knows his rhetoric, and it is rhetoric he uses to try and get people to sign up to his latest wheeze.

“Let’s play a game,” he says. “True or false: the government will do all it can to provide for you. True or false: the financial establishment have your best interests at heart.

“True or false: you can trust all you read in the mainstream media. If you answered true, you need to open your eyes.”

In a stroke he has painted himself as standing up against the government, the financial establishment and the mainstream media. It is his normal way of operating to put himself forward as an outsider, even though it is not the case.

It was the financial establishment that gave him his break after he left his public school in South London. He was a commodity trader for 20 years working for a number of City businesses.

And it was the mainstream media that gave Mr Farage all the publicity he has wanted over the past couple of decades, including a record number of appearances on the BBC’s Question Time and his own show on radio station LBC.

The Sunday Express even gave him a rather generous plug for his new financial scheme earlier this month. In other words, he is part of the mainstream media.

Without a doubt, he is the establishment – apart from his failure to become an MP despite 25 years of trying – and to paint himself as otherwise is rather disingenuous.  

But that does not mean he cannot be a dispenser of financial advice, does it? After all, why shouldn’t people benefit from his years of experience?

He is quick to point out that he is not offering advice, just “the truth about your money – behind the headlines, jargon and spin”.

Indeed, the small print in his new daily newsletter warns: “The advice we provide is published generally... We do not assess the suitability or appropriateness of any investment.”

So, what will he be telling people? Gold and cryptocurrencies seem to be what they are pushing, from what I have seen so far. One is obvious, the other is highly-speculative.

Financial planner Martin Bamford has plenty to say about Mr Farage’s scheme in a recent blog on his Informed Choice website.

“Financial newsletters like this exist to sell things to their readers,” he writes. “The fear is that they will direct subscribers towards high-risk and speculative investments.”

Mr Bamford’s view of cryptocurrencies? “The only potential cryptocurrencies have, from an investment perspective, is to lose you money.”

I know lots of journalists will be keeping a close eye on Mr Farage’s activities, but financial advisers should be checking that any clients signing up for this newsletter know the dangers and protect them from risking their savings.

Simon Read is a freelance journalist