Pension liberation fraud; inheritance fraud; rare earth metals; diamonds; carbon credits and fraud relating to overseas land and property were revealed as current investment fraud concerns for the enforcement and financial crime teams.
Attended by 400 delegates from financial services, the treasury and key law enforcement agencies, the conference included speeches from FCA chief executive Martin Wheatley and director of enforcement and financial crime, Tracey McDermott.
“The new FCA is not simply a consumer protection authority. It is not simply a markets orientated authority. It is just as much an enforcement authority, with a clear mandate to pursue prosecutions, issue fines, ban individuals from financial services and prevent future financial crime,” Wheatley said.
Last year the FCA handed out a record of £312m in fines, more than triple the previous high number of £89m.
With regards to pension liberation fraud, Wheatley said there have been reports of individuals losing 60% to 80% of their pension pots after being conned out of them by supposed ‘financial advisers’.
“This is a scam that operates on the very fringes of legality and morality: often beyond them.
“As part of our prevention work, the FCA has begun investigating how we can give added protection to pension holders on top of the law enforcement work already being done by police. So, for example, how we clamp down on the tactics of advisers and firms who give pension liberaton the veneer of respectability," Wheatley concluded.
