Clone Firm Details and Warnings
The Financial Conduct Authority has issued a warning about an unauthorized entity operating under the name shardcreditpartners.uk. The entity has been contacting individuals while falsely pretending to be genuine, authorized financial services firms. Fraudsters are utilizing the website shardcreditpartners.uk and email addresses including support@shardcreditpartners.uk and admin@shardcreditpartners.uk, while potentially mixing these with details of legitimate organizations.
Impact on Consumer Protections
The regulator confirmed that dealing with this clone firm means consumers will not have access to the Financial Ombudsman Service for complaints. Furthermore, individuals will not be protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme if the firm goes out of business. However, consumers who sent money to a fraudster on or after 7 October 2024 may be covered by protections introduced by the Payment Systems Regulator.
Details of the Genuine Firm
The fraudulent entity has no connection to the genuine authorized firms it is claiming to represent, which include Shard Capital AIFM LLP, holding Firm Reference Number 615463 and located at 51 Lime Street, London, and Shard Credit Partners Ltd, holding Firm Reference Number 702785 and located at Victoria Street, London. The regulator advises the public to verify firms using the FCA Firm Checker and to report unauthorized entities directly.