‘I felt powerless’: how a crypto scam cost a finance boss £300,000

[Itsallaguess]

‎
A senior manager at a UK investment firm has told how he was conned out of his £300,000 life savings by cryptocurrency scammers.

Matthew Thomas* says he was “probably blinded by a mixture of greed, curiosity and stubbornness” when he was ensnared by the elaborate and complex scam which took place over six months.

The details of his experience, which he has shared in an attempt to stop others getting stung, emerge as tough new marketing rules for crypto firms aimed at providing better protection for UK consumers came into force on Sunday.

The scam that ensnared Thomas began in January when he was contacted by a friend who had started using a crypto trading app that he believed was based in the US.

By July he had lost more than £300,000, some of which (about £60,000) was money he raised by borrowing on his mortgage, with a further £20,000 obtained via a loan from work which he intends to pay back over the next couple of years.

“It started off seeming very legitimate,” he says. But gradually, over time, the scammers “pull[ed] various levers” to get more money.

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2023/oct/10/crypto-scam-finance-boss-fraudsters-savings

The above article ends with the following Financial Conduct Authority warning -

For its part, the City regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, says it “continues to remind people that purchasing crypto assets remains high-risk and that they should be prepared to lose all their money”.

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

[kiloran]

‎
A senior manager at a UK investment firm has told how he was conned out of his £300,000 life savings by cryptocurrency scammers.

Matthew Thomas* says he was “probably blinded by a mixture of greed, curiosity and stubbornness”

Itsallaguess

Just the qualities you need at an investment firm

--kiloran

[terminal7]

see previous topic.

This time a 'senior manager' at an investment firm. Might as well go to your nearest casino and put your life's savings on red (or black).

T7

[Dumbo]

It doesn't surprise me that finance people can be scammed by expert con artists.

People need to be alert, as Scammers tend to come across as being normal just like the rest of us.

[Urbandreamer]

‎The above article ends with the following Financial Conduct Authority warning -

For its part, the City regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, says it “continues to remind people that purchasing crypto assets remains high-risk and that they should be prepared to lose all their money”.

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

Indeed. DO YOUR HOMEWORK.

Even "honest" crypto can lose you money. Most actually believe that Luna was honest, and it cost a lot of people, including those behind it, quite a bit of money.

This however was a plain scam.
Indeed I've not seen anything to suggest that any real crypto was involved at all.

Since we are on the Crypto board can I offer the same advice that you might expect to receive from the financial press about investing in shares. DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH.

Personally I researched my chosen Crypto for quite a while before doing anything. I'm also not in it as a get rich quick scheme, despite accusations. I actually own it as "skin in the game" to encourage me to find out more about it and understand it better.

Ps, over the years I have known plenty of people who describe the stock market as a casino. I've even heard of one or two companies that could be described as scams. At one point Chinese gold miners seemed all the rage on AIM.

[stevensfo]

‎The above article ends with the following Financial Conduct Authority warning -

For its part, the City regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, says it “continues to remind people that purchasing crypto assets remains high-risk and that they should be prepared to lose all their money”.

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

Indeed. DO YOUR HOMEWORK.

Even "honest" crypto can lose you money. Most actually believe that Luna was honest, and it cost a lot of people, including those behind it, quite a bit of money.

This however was a plain scam.
Indeed I've not seen anything to suggest that any real crypto was involved at all.

Since we are on the Crypto board can I offer the same advice that you might expect to receive from the financial press about investing in shares. DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH.

Personally I researched my chosen Crypto for quite a while before doing anything. I'm also not in it as a get rich quick scheme, despite accusations. I actually own it as "skin in the game" to encourage me to find out more about it and understand it better.

Ps, over the years I have known plenty of people who describe the stock market as a casino. I've even heard of one or two companies that could be described as scams. At one point Chinese gold miners seemed all the rage on AIM.

DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH.

Not just Crypto but everything, banks, online banks, Estate agents, even schools and Doctors' surgeries etc.

People have to take their duties of Due Diligence seriously. KYB (Know your bank), AML checks, Ofsted reports, references from parents etc.

I have the impression that the public are treated like sheep, esp. re. Privacy laws and their rights as consumers, parents, clients.

When you spend some time doing some research on the internet, it can be quite scary what you you discover!


Steve

[Gilgongo]

"I did everything I could to top up the additional $200,000. This involved using all remaining savings I had, as well as borrowing from my mortgage and work"

To describe this as jaw-dropping seems ... mild. The article starts off as a noble warning to the general public about getting caught up in scams, but rapidly turns into a warning never to trust your money to a UK investment firm! What next? UK fire safety inspector who burnt his own house down tells us how easy it was to let off fireworks in the kitchen? "For a while the bright flashes and exhilarating bangs looked exactly like the pictures on the box..."