Lancashire-based Guy Flintham has plead guilty to defrauding investors at Southwark Crown Court today (February 19), after the Financial Conduct Authority launched proceedings against him.

Between January 2016 and November 2021, the regulator alleged Flintham defrauded around 240 investors by persuading them to invest approximately £19mn in an investment scheme operated by the 46-year-old.

https://www.ftadviser.com/fca/2024/02/19/individual-pleads-guilty-to-19mn-investment-fraud/

The amount of money lost to fraudsters in the UK during 2023 more than doubled to a total of £2.3bn, a report finds.

Victims of high-value fraud – cases involving losses of over £50,000 – shot up by 60% last year, while half were for losses of over £200m, which is almost triple the amount compared to 2022.

https://www.yourmoney.com/household-bills/news-household-bills/money-lost-to-fraud-in-the-uk-more-than-doubles-to-2-3bn/

Allianz Commercial reported a significant increase in detected claims fraud for the year 2023, with the figures reaching £77.4 million, up from £70.7 million in the previous year.

The insurer also reported savings of £1.95 million from application fraud, attributed to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, which is believed to be exacerbating financial pressures on businesses, consequently elevating the risk of insurance fraud.

https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/uk/news/claims/allianz-fraud-savings-in-claims-hit-nearly-80-million-in-2023-476837.aspx

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain should allow law enforcement authorities to pay for key evidence to incentivise whistleblowing and speed up white-collar crime probes, the head of the UK's fraud watchdog said on Tuesday.

Nick Ephgrave, the director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), said he wanted the agency to deal with cases more quickly under his leadership.

After a year where Brits were on track to lose over £1bn to scammers, the consumer protection tide may be finally turning, according to an experienced fraud prevention expert.

Throughout 2023, scams involving holiday bookings, online romance, courier deliveries, fake online retailers, and even HMRC tax returns have dogged UK households.

https://www.yourmoney.com/household-bills/interview-with-mike-haley-head-of-cifas-tide-is-turning-on-fraudsters/

https://www.itv.com/watch/news/stop-think-fraud-government-launches-anti-fraud-campaign-to-help-protect-people-from-crime/0kbc359

Three men who laundered funds fraudulently obtained from 350 people who were tricked into investing more than £12 million in non-existent or worthless shares have been sentenced today.

Some victims invested tens of thousands of pounds they had saved for their retirement and will have to continue working for longer than they had planned. The largest amount lost by a single victim was £300,000.

The head of the UK’s anti-fraud agency will set out his vision for a “bolder, pragmatic, more proactive” prosecutor this week in his first public speech since taking up the position late last year.

The director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), Nick Ephgrave, is set to give his maiden speech tomorrow evening at an event hosted by defence and security think tank Royal United Services Institute.

https://www.cityam.com/sfo-boss-to-promise-more-dawn-raids-and-swifter-action-to-tackle-fraud/

AI-enhanced attacks are on the rise, leaving many organisations’ cybersecurity unprepared for the volume of new challenges; reveals cyber protection firm, Acronis, in its latest cyber threats report.

https://thefintechtimes.com/91-1-of-organisations-impacted-by-ai-enhanced-phishing-attacks-acronis-reports/

A long-awaited report into the behaviour of the banks at the centre of the HBOS Reading scandal has been pushed back – meaning victims remain without closure more than a decade on from one of Britain’s worst corporate frauds.

In January 2017, six people – two of them former HBOS staff – were convicted for criminal misconduct between 2003 and 2007.

https://www.cityam.com/another-post-office-hbos-reading-fraud-scandal-report-delayed-yet-again/