The asset manager is aware of four scams targeting clients and said they were “sophisticated attempts at fraudulently acquiring information and money” from members of the public as well as Invesco and Invesco Perpetual investment trust shareholders.
People should be wary if they receive a cold-call from someone claiming to represent Invesco as they would never contact a client by phone or email to make investment recommendations, it said.
“If you have been contacted in this manner we would urge you to exercise extreme caution and not to respond to them in any way,” Invesco said.
Among those targeted are shareholders in the Perpetual Income and Growth Investment Trust (PIGIT) who have been contacted by scammers urging them to sell their shares under the pretence of a “hostile takeover bid”.
Other callers claiming to work for the ‘Invesco Keystone Investment Trust’, ask members of the public to pay for help selling investments such as carbon credits, precious metals and land.
It is thought the people called in the second scam are previous victims of an investment scam and Invesco Perpetual has confirmed the so-called ‘trust’ had no affiliation to the Keystone Investment Trust, Invesco Perpetual or any of its subsidiaries.
Hijacking the Invesco brand
A further cold-calling scam involves a firm calling itself “Invesco Capital Ltd” which offers help arranging or recovering commodity investments or carbon credits.
It has even gone as far as setting up its own website, invescocapital.com, hijacking the Invesco brand for credibility.
Another fake firm using the name “Global Invesco” is also doing the rounds.
It claims to be owned by “Nordic Market Services Ltd” and says it is linked to Invesco Perptual’s Global Investment Series, but it is not connected in any way.
A spokesperson for Invesco said: “Unfortunately scams of this nature are not uncommon nowdays and we always act immediately to highlight the scam, communicate the important information and direct to the FCA website where people can find further information to protect themselves.”
It urges anyone who suspects they have been targeted by the scams to contact the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) by phone: 0800 111 6768 or email: consumer.queries@fca.org.uk
To contact Invesco Perpetual directly call 0800 085 8677.
The UK’s national fraud and cyber crime reporting centre, Action Fraud, can be contacted on 0300 123 2040.
