2 min read•Free practical guide

Separate the opportunity from the pressure

A persuasive approach may include a polished website, convincing documents or a name you recognise. Start by writing down what is being offered, which legal entity is offering it, how you were contacted and what you are being asked to do next.

Urgency, secrecy and promises of unusually reliable returns are reasons to pause. Do not let a countdown, claimed limited allocation or friendly relationship replace independent checks. A legitimate opportunity should still be capable of being explained in writing and considered with your own adviser.

Use the regulator’s own records

For a financial service offered in the UK, check the firm and the relevant permissions through the FCA’s tools. Use the contact details in the official record to verify the approach, rather than those in the message. A fraudster may copy a genuine firm’s name or reference number.

Search the FCA Warning List as an additional check. The absence of a warning is not a clean bill of health: a suspicious business may be new, renamed or not yet known to the regulator. Registration of a company is also not a substitute for checking financial-services permissions.

Make a facts-and-questions sheet

You do not need to decide everything in one sitting. Divide your notes into the claims you can independently verify and the points you cannot. Keep copies of the approach, the dates and the relevant public links without publishing allegations.

  • Who is the contracting entity and who receives the funds?
  • What exactly is the proposed product or service?
  • Which official permission, if any, covers the activity?
  • Are names, domains and contact details consistent?
  • Which claims need a qualified financial or legal adviser’s view?

If you are already concerned

If money has moved and you suspect fraud, contact your bank promptly and use the relevant official reporting route. Be cautious about unsolicited recovery offers; an advance payment or a promise to recover everything can be a further risk.

Free first step: complete the claims-and-questions sheet before responding to another message. Ask PDC about investigating unclear identities, commercial connections or background claims when those facts would help your advisers. PDC’s role is fact-finding; this guide is not an investment recommendation and cannot establish that a product is safe or suitable.

Questions you may have

Is the absence of a warning reassuring?

It is only one limited check. The FCA says a firm can be unauthorised or a scam even if it has not appeared on the Warning List.

Can PDC tell me whether to invest?

PDC can discuss factual due diligence. Investment suitability, financial advice and legal rights need the appropriate qualified advisers.

Sources & further reading

Check the original sources for their latest information and service terms.