Mini-bond victims targeted by scammers again

Bogus email claims to be from a director of the defunct investment firm

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The clients of beleaguered company London Capital & Finance (LCF) are being re-contacted by scammers, almost three years after the fight for compensation started.

The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) said in an update on its website that LCF administrators at Smith & Williamson were shown emails sent to the bondholders which “appear to be a scam”.

It was sent from a person claiming to be a director of LCF under the email address ‘info@londoncapitalfinanceuk.com’.

According to the FSCS, the emails encourage the reader to call a phone number and “lodge a claim into the government scheme”; “lodge claims directly with our financial intermediary”, “claim your personal settlement” or similar phrases.

It also ‘threatened’ the bondholders that failure to act will result in “waiving your right” to money or “receiving nothing”. The number shown in the emails can be found on a website which the FCA warned is unauthorised, the FSCS added.

The lifeboat scheme said: “Please be extremely wary of any contact that isn’t directly from FSCS or LCF’s administrator, and if you are unsure, always contact us directly. You do not need to do anything to receive compensation under the government scheme, and FSCS will be in touch with everyone by 20 April 2022.”

This is the second time LCF bondholders have been contacted by scammers in relation to their compensation, with a first known attempt in February 2020, a year after the collapse of London Capital & Finance.

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