21st August 2025, saw the first hearing in the Serious Fraud Office’s criminal trial of some of the players in the Store First pension scam. The pension schemes involved included bogus occupational schemes Capita Oak and Henley Retirement Benefits Scheme – as well as various SIPPS including Carey Pensions and Berkeley Burke. Appearing in the […]
STORE FIRST SFO FRAUD PROSECUTIONS Read More »
High Court Rules in Trafalgar Multi Asset Fund Case against James Hadley and associates. In a recent High Court judgment, Judge Mr. Nicholas Thompsell found that the Cayman-Islands based Trafalgar Multi Asset Fund (TMAF) was involved in an illegal conspiracy to “extract commissions from the investments.” The defendants, who were also behind the 2013 Store
Trafalgar Multi Asset Fund Judgement Read More »
Our last blog in this series recreated the offshore pension scam process. We covered the set up and hard sell. The slick salesman prepared the unwitting victim and convinced him his pension would be better off out of the UK. The silver-tongued spiv, Darren, posing as an adviser, conned his new client with no problem
Pension Scams Explained – Stage 2 Read More »
I don’t often disagree with highly-regarded pensions expert Henry Tapper. Too much respect and awe. But his recent blog: “The Balls of Old Bailey” (about Andrew Bailey) merits a polite argument. It has made me cross – not cross with Henry, per se. But cross with the failure of Britain’s culture, government, regulation and legal
THE BOLLOCKS OF OLD BAILEY Read More »
On the web of pension scams It seems as though criminal convictions against pension scammers might be getting popular. More than a decade has gone by with virtually none of the usual suspects getting jailed – despite a few criminal investigations (that, so far, have not resulted in convictions). Is the system really that hopeless
The Web of Pension Scams Read More »
At the end of January 2022, Boris Johnson claimed he had reduced crime by 14%. Boris shocked a lot of people with this figure. But, apparently, he wasn’t talking about fraud. He’d forgotten that even some of his own constituents had been defrauded into the Ark pension scam (and that he had promised to “sort
Boris on Crime (I see no fraud!) Read More »
2021 was a tough year for everybody in the world. But for Pension Life it was especially frustrating because courts and law firms were severely held up as they got to grips with the challenges of Covid, travel restrictions and working remotely. Attending hearings and meetings by video conference was a hit-or-miss affair. The success
2021/22 Roundup for Pension Life Read More »
The world of pension and investment scams is dominated and driven by commissions on investments (usually unregulated). The scammers’ strategy is always identical: get the pensions away from the safety of a reputable pension provider and into the hands of a SIPP, a SSAS or a QROPS. One purported benefit of these types of schemes
Pension Scam Investments Read More »
The FCA seems to have woken up. It only took eleven years. Eleven years of laziness, torpor, disinterest and deliberately ignoring the problem. But, completely out of the blue, the FCA has suddenly got bored with crapping on bathroom floors and has decided to do a spot of rather belated regulating. The object of this
FCA Investigates Ark and AES Read More »
April 2019 sees the battle between Store First and the Insolvency Service. On April 15th, the High Court proceedings will kick off. As a result, the Store First v Insolvency Service will determine how many people will lose their pensions permanently. Two sets of very expensive lawyers – DWF and Eversheds Sutherland – will battle
Store First v Insolvency Service Battle Read More »
In the run up to the High Court proceedings to hear the Insolvency Service’s petition to wind up Store First, here is some background. This is an abridged version of the Insolvency Service’s witness statement regarding the Store First pension investment scam. It involved two bogus occupational pension schemes set up and administered by Stephen
Store First v Insolvency Service Battle – the Insolvency Service’s Witness Statement Read More »
In every pension scam there is one beginning, lots of middles, and always a wretched ending for the victim and a profitable ending for the scammers. The beginning is always a negligent, lazy, box-ticking transfer by a ceding provider – the worst of which always tend to be the likes of Standard Life, Prudential, Scottish
Who killed the pension? Scammers; ceding providers; introducers; HMRC? Read More »
Ten Essential Standards For Pension Advice: The ongoing war against pension scammers continues with no sign that the end is near. The authorities stand idly by – facilitating mis-selling and outright fraud. HMRC happily registers pension scam after scam after scam (followed by tax demands). Prosecutions are few and far between. The only conclusive way to
Ten Essential Standards For Pension Advice Read More »
Another victim of Berkeley Burke SIPPS investments into Store First storage pods has come forward. 55-year-old factory worker Robert McCarthy, of Ebbw Vale, said he has lost more than £30,000 through a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP). He was duped into the transfer and investment by unregulated firm Jackson Francis which was liquidated in 2014. His investment
More negligence from trustees Berkeley Burke – Store First Read More »
As 2018 draws to a close, a recap is in order to review the year’s progress in the war against pension scammers. Let us not forget – in the immortal words of the Pensions Regulator’s Lesley Titcombe: “scammers are criminals“. However, the sad truth is that most of them have not been prosecuted or jailed.
Scammers are criminals. So why aren’t they in jail? Read More »
The financial services industry has failed with flying colours to achieve transparency – both offshore and in the UK. The single most important thing about any product or service is transparency – aka honesty. This is where the profession has tolerated – and even encouraged – bare-faced lying for years and continues to do so
Transparency Failure With Flying Colours Read More »
Unqualified Pension Scammers Banned Articles like New Model Adviser’s report on some of the scammers behind the Capita Oak/Henley/Store First scam getting banned always makes me smile. Knowing that a few pension scammers (four in this case), are being named and shamed – as well as banned from being directors – motivates me to share information
Unqualified pension scammers banned Read More »
Katar Investments say they give UK and overseas investment advice in a simple way. However, the types of investment opportunities they are offering are, unfortunately, once again, making my red beacon flash. So, with Déjà vu, let me tell you why. Please make sure you are comfy, this might take a while! Firstly, I had
Katar Investment Weapons Read More »
The Serious Fraud Office has written to Frank Field – Chairman of the Pensions Select Committee. The SFO was responding to Frank’s request for details about pension fraud cases prosecuted by the SFO and about the fraudsters’ various scamming techniques. It is obviously essential to recognise and understand these techniques so that police authorities, regulators,
Pension Scams: Investigations and prosecutions by SFO Read More »
The BSPS dilemma for steelworkers is clearly difficult with very little time to consider options and make a wise decision which will affect them for the rest of their lives. There’s a whole team of willing voluntary professional advisers trying to provide some guidance to help people avoid making the wrong decision. This team includes eminent
BSPS – Pension Dilemma for Steel Workers Read More »
Phillip Nunn has been reported to Action Fraud – which John Ferguson of Square Mile Financial Services describes as being “nobody and with no authority” – on numerous occasions by victims of various scams. Phillip Nunn, cold caller and “fund manager” of the Blackmore Global investment scam, was given the Entrepreneur of the Year Award
PHILLIP NUNN – SCAM OF THE YEAR – BLACKMORE GLOBAL Read More »
SCAMS AND SCANDALS SYMPOSIUM – PART OF THE TRANSPARENCY TASK FORCE: WEDNESDAY 15TH NOVEMBER AT THE OFFICES OF IG GROUP, 12.30 TO 5PM Pension and investment scams and scandals are a blight on financial services and saving for retirement. The energetic and inspired campaign by Darren Cooke of Red Circle successfully raised awareness of the
SCAMS AND SCANDALS SYMPOSIUM – TRANSPARENCY TASK FORCE 15.11.17 Read More »
Fenner Moeran QC, of Wilberforce Chambers, for Dalriada Trustees in the High Court Beddoe proceedings in June 2017, sought the court’s permission – using the term “sharp stick” in his pleadings – and directions to use the Ark victims’ funds to force them to repay their Ark MPVAs. Beddoe proceedings: arguably (apparently) Dalriada could have
FENNER MOERAN QC AND THE SHARP STICK (Ark debARKle) Read More »
SAIL FINANCIAL AND TRAFALGAR MULTI ASSET FUND: What is the connection? Who is behind Sail Financial? And what is the connection to Trafalgar Multi Asset Fund? We know Trafalgar Multi Asset Fund was originally run by XXXX XXXX as “Victory Asset Management” and that XXXX had also been behind the Capita Oak, Henley Retirement Benefits Scheme
SAIL FINANCIAL – ANOTHER SCAM? Read More »
The Serious Fraud Office has asked victims of the Capita Oak, Henley, Westminster and Trafalgar Multi Asset Fund scams to make a report so that these crimes can be investigated. But I am urging all victims of ALL scams to also make reports to the SFO, please. This story was first published by
SERIOUS FRAUD OFFICE REQUESTS PENSION AND INVESTMENT SCAM REPORTS Read More »
HMRC is reported to have collected a billion quid in APN tax demanded (Accelerated Payment Notice) in the past year. A figure of £2 billion is also reported in other Google searches according to other reports. We are talking about over 1,000 different types of tax – er – “planning” schemes flogged by accountants and
HMRC’s APN £1 Billion (or £2 Billion) Tax Demand: “TAKE THAT!” Read More »
In the Capita Oak pension scam, the “Ginger Scammer” – XXXX XXXX – is reported to have earned over £200k in transfer/administration fees alone. It is not known how much he earned in investment introduction commissions. The Ginger Scammer can afford to stump up some cash for the benefit of the victims of the Capita
CAPITA OAK – THE GINGER SCAMMER Read More »
HENLEY PENSION SCAM THE WAY THE SCHEME WORKED This was the “sister” scheme to Capita Oak, whose trustee was Imperial Trustee Services. The Henley trustee was Omni Trustees. Both Omni and Imperial were wound up by the Insolvency Service in the summer of 2015 and the two schemes had around £20m invested in Store First
Henley Pension Scam Read More »
A DAY – The WHEN, WHAT, WHO, HOW, & WHERE Pension tax simplification, often simply referred to as “pension simplification” and taking effect from A-day on 6 April 2006 was a policy announced in 2004 by the Labour government to rationalise the British tax system as applied to pension schemes. The aim was to reduce the complicated patchwork of legislation built up
A Day – a Starting Point to Understanding How you got scammed out of Your pension Read More »
Capita Oak pension scam: Imperial accounts 23.1.15 Ark Class Action 24 Calle Cuatro Esquinas, Lanjaron 18420, Granada, Spain angiebrooks@pension-life.com angiebrooks99@gmail.com 0034674746663 (mobile) 0034858995645 (landline) www.pension-life.com Roger Chant, Director – Imperial Trustee Services Ltd.
CAPITA OAK PENSION SCAM Read More »
toCapita Oak pension scam: hundreds search for pensions they transferred after cold calls. In a special You and Yours, we investigate a web of companies that sold millions of pounds of pension investments to hundreds of people – and has left many of them desperately trying to find out where their money has gone. Click
CAPITA OAK PENSION SCAM: BBC Radio 4 You and Yours. Read More »
For the benefit of all 300 odd members of Capita Oak, here is an email that was sent today to Downs & Co, the accountants acting on behalf of Christopher Payne, the director of the trustees Imperial. This email has been circulated to many Capita Oak members and other interested parties such as the police
CAPITA OAK UPDATE AND INFORMATION REQUIRED Read More »
