More than £27m lost in forex and crypto investment scams last year May 21, 2019 Over £27m was reported lost to cryptocurrency and forex investment scams in the last financial year, figures published today show. Victims lost an average of £14,600 according to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Action Fraud. Reports tripled compared to the previous year to over 1,800. The FCA said fraudsters use social media to promote [...]
Thank Yu very much: Yu Group soars as FCA drops investigation into £10m accounting black hole May 16, 2019 Yu Group shares jumped by more than four fifths today as the Financial Conduct Authority dropped an investigation into the energy company. The FCA decided to take no action against Yu over an accounting error which cost the company £10m last year. Read more: Yu Group shares plunge 80 per cent as it warns profits [...]
The big fixer-upper: How to solve the problems in the mortgage market May 15, 2019 We've sent people into space, built driverless cars, and engineered robots that can think like us. And yet, fixing the mortgage approval process still seems out of humanity’s reach. The market is riddled with inefficiencies. Consumers are forced to fill out documents detailing every corner of their lives, while clunky underwriting processes mean that it [...]
MPs tell government to intervene if banks don’t do enough to halt branch closures May 13, 2019 The government or the financial watchdog should be ready to intervene if banks do not do enough to halt the closure of local branches, MPs have suggested. In its report into financial inclusion, the influential Treasury Select Committee (TSC) said the closure of local branches were more likely to affect older and more vulnerable customers and [...]
City watchdog proposes mortgage shake-up to boost consumer choice May 7, 2019 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) today announced changes to mortgage advice rules to try and increase choice for consumers. The City watchdog identified a number of ways its advice rules are acting as a barrier to the development of new tools to help consumers choose and buy a mortgage and the new rules are aimed [...]
City watchdog launches review of the financial advice market May 1, 2019 The City watchdog today launched a review of the financial advice market amid concerns investors are paying too much. The Financial Conduct Authority’s review will look at what consumers want from the market and how the market works to deliver this. The FCA will review how changes made since 2012, including the retail distribution review [...]
Crypto AM industry voices: Regulating blockchain and crypto April 30, 2019 | Sponsored The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and others are working to provide regulatory guidance frameworks and structures in the ever-changing landscape of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. The views on these activities run the gamut from the Establishment (‘The sooner we get regulation, the sooner things will really take off’) to [...]
Financial investment fraud cases jumped 74 per cent in 2018 April 29, 2019 Reported fraud cases related to financial investments rose 74 per cent to 6,890 last year, up from 3,950 in 2017. The most commonly reported cases were related to share and bond sales which saw an increase to 860 last year, up from 200 in 2017, and pyramid or Ponzi schemes, which saw an increase to [...]
Financial Conduct Authority dawn raids nearly doubled in 2018 April 29, 2019 The number of dawn raids conducted by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has almost doubled over the past year, from 13 in 2017 to 25 in 2018. Financial services regulatory consultancy Fscom said one of the drivers of the jump in raids was likely to be an FCA crackdown on unregulated investments. Read more: London [...]
Half of motorists think charging loyal car insurance customers more should be illegal April 24, 2019 Fifty per cent of motorists think it should be illegal for insurers to charge existing customers more than new customers for the same cover, a new survey said today. The research by price comparison site Go Compare showed 61 per cent of participants felt insurers treat existing customers less favourably by charging those who renew [...]