FCA hands £3.4m back to unauthorised investment scheme victims

Digital Wealth and Outsourcing Express raised over £15m

The Financial Conduct Authority is set to return more than £3.4m to victims of a series of unauthorised deposit taking and collective investment schemes.

Between 2015 and 2017 Digital Wealth and Outsourcing Express, which was also known as Kerchiing, is alleged to have been involved in the online purchase of wholesale goods from China for onward sale and promising unrealistically high returns, in some cases up to 100% of the amount invested. In reality, no significant trading was conducted and the schemes relied on a continuous flow of new investors to fund existing investors' returns. By the time the FCA "took immediate enforcement action" to prevent disposal of remaining funds, according to the regulator, the schemes ultimately raise...