If you suspect investment fraud, report it immediately to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Action Fraud. Action Fraud is the UK’s national reporting centre for fraud and cybercrime. Reporting scams helps authorities investigate scammers and prevent others from falling victim to fraud. You can also check the FCA’s warning list to verify if a firm is genuine before investing.

Investment fraud takes many forms, with scammers using different tactics to deceive victims. Some of the most common scams include:

Pension scams: Fraudsters trick victims into transferring their retirement savings into fraudulent schemes.
Pump-and-dump scams: Scammers inflate stock prices through misleading claims before selling their shares at a profit.
Romance scams: Scammers build online relationships to convince victims to invest in fraudulent opportunities.

Tracing services in investment fraud involves following the movement of funds to identify and recover assets lost to fraudulent schemes. In cryptocurrency investment cases, this involves blockchain forensic investigations that track stolen digital assets across different wallets and exchanges. Once the journey of your investment has been mapped, our fraud recovery experts create a detailed report to support your case and significantly improve the chance of reclaiming your lost investments.

Loan fee fraud: You’re accepted for a loan, but before it’s “approved”, you’re asked to pay a fee for insurance, processing or an admin charge. Once paid, the loan never arrives, and the scammer disappears with your funds.
Job scams: You apply for a job and are told you’ve been successful. But before you can start, you’re asked to pay for background checks, training, or admin costs. Once paid, the job offer vanishes, and so does the scammer with your money.
Social media competition: You’re told you’ve won a prize in a competition, perhaps one you never even entered. But to claim it, you need to pay a small fee for delivery, verification or admin. After you pay, the prize never arrives because the competition was fake.
Rental property scams: You find a great rental property online. The “landlord” asks for a deposit to reserve it, often claiming there’s a lot of interest or that you can’t view it in person. After you send the money, the property turns out to be fake — or already rented to someone else.