Boiler Room Scams

[looker1]

Although I have not had the experiance of working in one of these outfits, I have met many who have over the years, especially here in spain, the name windsor seems to have been popping up a fair bit in recent posts, and its not new in the boiler room game! Here the spanish equivilent of the fsa and the authorities here have opened there doors to the authorities and where as previously if the uk wanted to investigate here they would need a government invitation, that is no longer the case, the cnmv have relaxed that law and simply said, "come and get them" there has been a handfull of raids over the past few years, but you only have to go to any one of the thousands of English and irish bars in barcelona, madrid, benidorm, marbella (in fact the south coast in general) and sooner or later you will overhear "boilerroom talk" It surprises me that there are rooms in the uk, I always thought the attitude was to be offshore so you couldnt get caught, I guess it shows the lack of intelligence in the white collar crime world! likewise though, the spanish have opened there doors, and the uk authorities seem to do little compared to what you see just walking around out here, you cant miss all the wasted wide boys who "just opened a whale" If you've lost money to a spankshop, take a trip to spain, you may not find the exact culprit who stole your money folks, but you can still give a stock jockey a damn good hiding!

there are quite a few in the city tbh..

Ok so they are FSA registered - but they are still basically spank shops.

I was silly enough to work for one for about 2 weeks before resigning in disgust. Basically they just hard sell AIM cash shells etc.. to people who don't know what they are doing.

The best clients seemed to be plumbers, asian business men etc.. - basically self made aspirational types that didn't know a thing about investing but had plenty of free cash & were excited by the idea that they were talking to a 'stockbroker' - Also plenty of retired people fall victim to it a lot - they used the whole inheritance tax advantages of AIM to spank them too.

There seems to be a bit of a growth in CFD advisory places too - like the small cap spank shops they are basically small call centers located in cramped offices in the city & will simply stick a white label front end on the likes of CMC's platform etc... and whack on a huge commission on the whole nominal value of a clients position in return for their 'advice'

Honestly the people who work in these places tend to be used car salesmen Essex boy types employed for their banter etc... One of them at the firm I worked at failed his SII exams several times & one of the managers joked that they would have to get someone else in to take them for him adding the comment "its not the first time its been done"

(btw I'm not naming any firms on here though most of them are easy to spot)

 

[mannydog]

Hi All

I've also had a call from Cambridge Capital Trading offering amazing returns for currency options dealing between to AUD/USD riding on the coat tails of Untied Arab Emiraties Commodities Futures Board (http://www.uaecfb.com/).

I've been offered 5 shares equivalent to US$5000 to trade through this organisation, with an expiry date of March 1st before the shares are worthless. I'm no trader by any means but I've googled this potential scam and this website is the only one with reference about this. I hope this helps someone else.

Regards

 

[wuzzafuzza75]

got same call from cambridge capital trading a TOM NEWMAN

i live in aus and it sounded like a scam anyone else out there been getting calls this guy is persistant cause i said yes i will part with 7000 dollars for 7 options on aussie currency , i told him to call back later and he has been calling everyday for the last week and i answer the phone with a fake accent and another name and i keep saying hes not here hes at work .

Im making him work hard for the money he will never see cause i feel it is a scam.
when something is to good to be true it probably is

 

[DT]

It surprises me that there are rooms in the uk, I always thought the attitude was to be offshore so you couldnt get caught, I guess it shows the lack of intelligence in the white collar crime world!

Not quite - I'd say the boiler room owners in Spain are the dumb ones.

Why move to Spain & be in constant fear of the authorities catching up with you when you can do *almost* the same thing in the UK with the added benefit of FSA regulation & the great thing is that you don't have to worry about getting caught because it is Legal (albeit very borderline).

You just have to look on the likes of motley fool etc.. to see how many of these firms are still running despite numerous complaints to the FSA and exposures in mainstream newspapers.

 

[looker1]

Very true DT, I never thought of it like that, and didnt realise it is that easy to get FSA papers either which says alot for the FSA too!

Not quite - I'd say the boiler room owners in Spain are the dumb ones.

Why move to Spain & be in constant fear of the authorities catching up with you when you can do *almost* the same thing in the UK with the added benefit of FSA regulation & the great thing is that you don't have to worry about getting caught because it is Legal (albeit very borderline).

You just have to look on the likes of motley fool etc.. to see how many of these firms are still running despite numerous complaints to the FSA and exposures in mainstream newspapers.

 

[Ralph Iselt]

I have been getting calls from a Ruben Goldberg of Cambridge Capital Trading and a Bob Dugen representing the Dubai Options Exchange offering options on the Australian dollar against the US dollar.
Other than their web sites I cannot find any other reference to these two entities. I cannot confIrm that either of these two entities exists. I even got in contact with the Al Attar Businees Tower where Cambridge are suppose to be in and they have never heard of them nor are they listed as a tenant. As for the DOE I really would like to know if there is such a place.

 

[malby2]

Cambridge Capital Trading

I also Got the call from a Guy not seemingly as pushy but same rough deal never the less. He offered a buy in of 3 Units which was $A3000. I think it has tobe a scam but so far no one has been able to prove it. Has anyone actually made the leap and been burnt or is it too early at the moment.

got same call from cambridge capital trading a TOM NEWMAN

i live in aus and it sounded like a scam anyone else out there been getting calls this guy is persistant cause i said yes i will part with 7000 dollars for 7 options on aussie currency , i told him to call back later and he has been calling everyday for the last week and i answer the phone with a fake accent and another name and i keep saying hes not here hes at work .

Im making him work hard for the money he will never see cause i feel it is a scam.
when something is to good to be true it probably is

 

[SamWoe]

Windsor

Had I invested a couple of weeks ago (£2000) using the Windsor advice, then I'd be now showing a book loss of £350 plus!

You are warned that shares can go up & down - BUT this was a LONG TERM investment, could not be sold for 12 months. Where would we be in 2008?

I'm aware of a lady that managed to stop a similar fantastic deal for £30,000 - Not with this outfit though. Her observation was he was a lovely man, came all the way over from Spain, to sign me up.
Thank goodness for ' t2w ' community.

But I'll guarantee, today & every day, someone will be sucked in by 'the best investment possible with exciting returns. Incredibly some who are 'caught' will be professionals, street cred individuals, with already a working knowledge of the share industry.

These saleman/advisors are very adapt plus carefully trained to press all the buttons.
SamWoe

Been reading the posts with interest I had windsor advisory service running from Barcelona scam me... 3 years ago - Yen options just wondering if this is the same set up again and again......having lost 4k and attempts to get £700 from my account back I did what I suspect often happens - no fsa and no hope unless I spent more chasing it!! I can't help but believe these guys are laughing all the way to the bank - because the name Windsor in one way or another keeps popping up....including court documents from various places. Dubia too...one guy certainly from that set up left to go to Dubia for more business opportunities...although I'd still like to do something it was a lesson learnt!!

 

[darby.thomson]

Cambridge Capital Trading have indeed been busy. A salesman talked a friend & I into investing
A$3000 each on the presumtion that the US dollar was going to slump. This salesman then passed us over to a Super salesman [a millionaire,no less managing huge corporate accounts] who then to tried to convince us to invest ALL of our money. I, like a lot of you, accessed the web sites of Cambridge Options Exchange to find out more. I can't say for sure it is a scam, but as a test I have E-mailed Bob Dougan at DOE asking how I might handle my investment personally.I'll keep you posted.

 

[Ralph Iselt]

Did you talk to a Ruben Goldberg?
Him and Bob sound so convincing.
The main thing that stopped me from investing was the Malaysian Bank account.
You won't know if it is a scam until after March when you try to get your funds, if there are any, back into your own account.
I checked out CCT address. They're not listed as a tenant. I even rang the Al Attar Business Tower and they have never heard of them.
When I said this to Ruben he got agro and said why don't you come over here and see for yourself. As if.
I wish someone could tell me if the DOE really exsists.
Let me know how you go.

Ralph

 

[hasse]

Hi,


The problem is that these 'spank-shops' are 1) not monitored closely enough by the authorities and 2) the money these guys earn is incredible. Some of these guys are making £700k per month themselves after costs etc. I certainly don't earn that, unfortunately, but rather that than be one of those w**kers. They typically stay in the world of spank for a short while until they can afford to retire, the stupid ones get greedy and stay on for longer. So I ask you, £700,000 per month, or £8.4M a year, that's money, so two years of that and supposing you've been relatively prudent you should have by my calculations approxamaitely £16.4-6M stashed away, I doubt any of these chaps pay tax.

So you can see why these boiler rooms exist, they are hugely profitable.

Most of them have posh names, an absolute cover-up of their spanky dealings, do not deal with them. I f anyone is being harassed by any of these firms then inform the DTI, they will eventually get to the bottom of it, if enough people follow suit.

Deal with a well regarded firm or a bank.

Thank you,

Hasse.

 

[darby.thomson]

Since I sent e-mails to Cambridge & Dubai Options Exchange I have been completely ignored. Almost as though they don't exist. How can I track down what country they are operating from? The fax number they are using is 0011442081505636 can this be tracked down?

 

[malby2]

That number is a UK phone number. I got one a number off there website and called them. on the Dubai Number I got an answering service Strange considering it was 10 am on a business day in Dubai.

Also if you have an account. Please note that in the transactions section of the account you are not sending data accross a HTTPS channel it is straight unincrypted HTTP. Strange for a financial institution carrying out sensitive transactions.

Since I sent e-mails to Cambridge & Dubai Options Exchange I have been completely ignored. Almost as though they don't exist. How can I track down what country they are operating from? The fax number they are using is 0011442081505636 can this be tracked down?

 

[Directional]

The reason these scam shops operate out of such places as Dubai and Spain are because the regulatory loopholes or lax enforcement mean that they can target consumers without fear of enforcement action.

If you get ripped off by a Dubai based boiler room, the Arabs in charge will not be falling over to help you get your money back.

Ask yourself:
1. cold call promising extravagent rich returns & nominal risk
+
2. Dubai based with zero regulation about making promises that would be illegal in the UK
+
3. Malaysian bank account receiving your transfer

Good investment??

they will be pocketing your entire investment, forget about just being charged a hefty commission.

 

[macthibuoi]

Hi,


The problem is that these 'spank-shops' are 1) not monitored closely enough by the authorities and 2) the money these guys earn is incredible. Some of these guys are making £700k per month themselves after costs etc. I certainly don't earn that, unfortunately, but rather that than be one of those w**kers. They typically stay in the world of spank for a short while until they can afford to retire, the stupid ones get greedy and stay on for longer. So I ask you, £700,000 per month, or £8.4M a year, that's money, so two years of that and supposing you've been relatively prudent you should have by my calculations approxamaitely £16.4-6M stashed away, I doubt any of these chaps pay tax.

So you can see why these boiler rooms exist, they are hugely profitable.

Most of them have posh names, an absolute cover-up of their spanky dealings, do not deal with them. I f anyone is being harassed by any of these firms then inform the DTI, they will eventually get to the bottom of it, if enough people follow suit.

Deal with a well regarded firm or a bank.

Thank you,

Hasse.

I think your calculations are somewhat off. The top guys with controlling intrests in several rooms may be earning the amounts you are talking about certainly not the "brokers".

 

[darby.thomson]

Boiler room scams

Thank you Arbitragear for introducing yourself. I am not crying into my pillow, I just want to get even. How do we put these people out of business?

 

[OW9405]

Hi,


The problem is that these 'spank-shops' are 1) not monitored closely enough by the authorities and 2) the money these guys earn is incredible. Some of these guys are making £700k per month themselves after costs etc. I certainly don't earn that, unfortunately, but rather that than be one of those w**kers. They typically stay in the world of spank for a short while until they can afford to retire, the stupid ones get greedy and stay on for longer. So I ask you, £700,000 per month, or £8.4M a year, that's money, so two years of that and supposing you've been relatively prudent you should have by my calculations approxamaitely £16.4-6M stashed away, I doubt any of these chaps pay tax.

So you can see why these boiler rooms exist, they are hugely profitable.

Most of them have posh names, an absolute cover-up of their spanky dealings, do not deal with them. I f anyone is being harassed by any of these firms then inform the DTI, they will eventually get to the bottom of it, if enough people follow suit.

Deal with a well regarded firm or a bank.

Thank you,

Hasse.

£8.4M a year? No wonder these guys are so busy calling us. If they are not paying tax, then most of that cash must be hid offshore. And if that's what these guys take home, imagine the size of the operations that support this kind of thing. No wonder they are not caught, they must be putting huge bribes in the pockets of the officials that support their operation.

 

[hasse]

Since I sent e-mails to Cambridge & Dubai Options Exchange I have been completely ignored. Almost as though they don't exist. How can I track down what country they are operating from? The fax number they are using is 0011442081505636 can this be tracked down?

From what I understand that is typical spank-shop behaviour, I would not expect a response in any guise. They could be anywhere, there are no clues in the phone number. They usually operate in tax-free havens or countries where regulations aren't very strict, e.g. Dubai, Gibraltar or Holland.

Have you lost money with them?

They buy large blocks of stock, usually penny-shares and then get their chimps to punt it to their trusting clients, they make their profit and then simply sit around waiting to get their grubby paws on more of the same and repeat.

You have to remember that you are dealing with scum, once they have your money, that's it, do not expect it back!

Next time....Just tell them to f**k-off! otherwise you going to get screwed.

 

[anuanua]

I have been called by Cambridge Capital Trading in Dubai for the past 2 weeks, asking me to set-up trading accounts with them. They used names such as Anna Walters and Dennis Chan. They even send me an e-mail with their company details. I have been 'playing with them for the past few days and told them I am happy to invest 8 options about USD8K. Let's see what they will try to do next, they very much remind me of the Nigerian 419 scams !

 

[Idris]

They have been pestering me too (using the name Marcus Reilly). Like other conributors to the forum, I have not been able to find anything that suggests they are legitimate. Notably they are not listed as tenants at the address they give.