Brewin Dolphin urge investors to “make yourself invisible” to combat Boiler Room threat

09 July 2008

Brewin Dolphin, the UK’s largest independent provider of private client investment management and financial planning services, today warned investors that identity protection was crucial in the battle against the threat posed by Boiler Room scams.

The Boiler Room threat has prompted the FSA (see below) to issue a warning about the hard sell tactics being used and Brewin Dolphin believes it is vital investors recognise the benefits of transferring shares to nominee accounts, which removes their names from the public domain, effectively, making them invisible to potential fraudsters.

Charlotte Black, Head of Corporate Affairs at Brewin Dolphin said: “Investors with stock registered in their own names and addresses are vulnerable targets for these boiler room fraudsters. The use of nominee provides a range of useful services, including identity protection and, uniquely at Brewin Dolphin, all clients in nominees are able to vote at their companies’ meetings and are not disenfranchised. It is also crucial investors ensure they only trade through companies that are regulated by the FSA.”

Brewin Dolphin has warned in the past about the dangers of ‘boiler rooms’, and indeed, how to avoid falling foul to fraudulent activity. Its Compliance Department works closely with the Financial Services Authority (FSA) to prevent clients, and the industry, from becoming victims to financial fraud.

For more information, contact
Charlotte Black
Brewin Dolphin
0845 213 3331

Vee Montebello/Alex Billson
Hume Brophy
020 7499 8736

N.B.
No investment or service is suitable for everyone, so investors should only accept financial advice or enter into transactions with qualified financial advisers. With a bewildering array of investment options available, investors should seek professional advice to ensure the financial products selected are tailored to their own needs and risk profile.

About’Boiler Rooms’
The objective of boiler rooms is to sell shares that either have no value, or if they do have value there is most probably a lock-in period or the price will be vastly inflated. The criminals steal funds through making a high pressured cold call to the investor, whose details are often obtained from shareholder registers at the Companies House. The unsuspecting investor is persuaded into parting with their hard-earned money, with the belief that they are on the verge of seeing their shares rocket in value. In fact, the laundered money goes directly into the pockets of the fraudsters.

One of the most common scams is the request for assistance in transferring foreign money (advanced fee fraud). All that is required of you is the use of your bank account, into which impressively large sums of money will be transferred and then withdrawn, leaving behind a residue of between 10% and 20% of the original sum. In reality what actually happens is that, just before the transfer takes place, you will be asked to pay an advance fee in order to set the deal up and prove your worth. If you pay, you will a) never see your money again, and b) receive a further demand(s) for cash. If you do not cooperate at this stage, your bank account will be emptied.

For more information, please visit the press section of the FSA website:
http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/Library/Communication/PR/2008/067.shtml