A Professional Adviser article reveals that Exmount Commercial Developments, which disappeared with investors’ money in the summer of 2019, has continued to scam investors even after disappearing.
The couple had invested their life savings with Exmount in 2018, after they were promised between 9.12% and 10.35% annual returns on their investment with three- or five-year bonds. The couple began investing a small amount of money, but over the course of a year took out five mini-bonds with Exmount for a total of £45,000.
The pair tried to redeem the unregulated bonds in early August 2019. According to Chan, a company representative asked the couple to pay a £606 exit fee. The pair paid, thinking they could get their capital back, but were then told there had been an error, and were asked to send an additional £606.
Needless to say the couple never got their £1,212 or their £45,000 back.
Note that August 2019, when the customers attempted to redeem their bonds, was months after Exmount Construction had already done a runner and stopped responding to investor queries.
Whether the recovery fraud was perpetrated by Exmount personnel themselves, or whether Exmount sold their contact list to a third party who then contacted the couple claiming to be from Exmount, is unknown, and matters little.
Exmount Construction Limited went through a series of director changes in its final months, with the final director, Rakesh Raj, resigning on 1 August 2019. Raj was also a director of a shell company, ECD Group Limited (it is probably not a coincidence that ECD stands for Exmount Commercial Developments). Exmount Construction is now rudderless with no directors.
What should I do if I invested with Exmount Construction?
Investors who are owed money by an unregulated firm and aren’t being paid have two practical options: 1) seek legal advice from a registered solicitor, and risk throwing good money after bad, or 2) write it off and forget about it.
Investors can also report Exmount’s disappearance to Action Fraud, although they should not expect to hear anything back beyond an automatic acknowledgement.
If investors are cold-called by anyone claiming they can get their money back from Exmount in return for “legal fees” or “admin fees” or any other payment by the investor, it is a scam – just as in the case reported.