Shareholder information

Sharedealing security

Over the past few years, many companies have become aware that their shareholders or potential shareholders have received unsolicited phone calls or correspondence concerning investment matters. These are typically from overseas-based ‘brokers’ who target UK shareholders, offering to sell them what often turn out to be worthless or high-risk shares in UK investments. These operations are commonly known as ‘boiler rooms’ and the ‘brokers’ can be very persistent and persuasive.

When it comes to financial services, the scam activity is more nuanced and often appears after the initial shock of a major event such as Coronavirus. Scammers are sophisticated, opportunistic and tend to target people who are more vulnerable or susceptible to being scammed, particularly in the current climate with many more people being at home. Using the uncertainty around stock markets, scammers may advise you to invest or transfer existing investments into high return (and high risk) investments.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) gives the following advice:

Protect yourself
If you are offered unsolicited investment advice, discounted shares, a premium price for shares you own, or free company or research reports, you should take these steps before handing over any money:

Only deal with financial services firms that are authorised by the FCA and check the Financial Services Register on register.fca.org.uk and Warning list on www.fca.org.uk/scamsmart/warning-list to check who you are dealing with.

Always check the firm is not a clone firm by asking for a firm reference number (FRN) and contact details and then calling back on the switchboard number on the FCA register – do not use links in emails or website from the firm offering you an investment.

Treat all unexpected calls, emails and text messages with caution even if the person seems to know some basic information about you.

Avoid being rushed or pressured into making a decision by seriously considering seeking financial advice or guidance before investing. Remember if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!

Contact the FCA Consumer Helpline on 0800 111 6768 if there are no contact details on the Register or you are told they are out of date.
If you use an unauthorised firm to buy or sell shares or other investments, you will not have access to the Financial Ombudsman Service or Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) if things go wrong.

Report a scam
If you are approached about a share scam you should tell the FCA using the following ways:

Call the FCA on
Freephone: 0800 111 6768
From the United Kingdom: 0300 500 8082
From abroad: +44 20 7066 1000

Email the FCA
queries@fca.org.uk

Complete the FCA form
FCA Report a Scam