FCA chair: Financial crime 'has reached epidemic proportions'

Charles Randell outlines FCA's approach to combating fraud

Investment fraud is one of the "the most damaging" aspects of financial crime, which "has reached epidemic proportions" with a growing number of investors scammed out of their savings, according to chair of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Charles Randell.

The FCA has been the target of much criticism for its handling of a spate of high profile scams and inappropriately risky investment scandals, such as that of London Capital & Finance, but Randell said the regulator is now taking further action on investment fraud. Reports of investment scams have skyrocketed in recent years, driven primarily by pensions freedoms and the growth of online advertisements for "get-rich-quick" schemes. While the figure is uncertain, the Crime Survey for England and Wales puts the total volume of fraud affecting individuals at 3.8 million cases, around one...