City watchdog doubled dawn raids last year
DAWN raids on suspects in frauds and other finance crime cases have almost doubled in the last 12 months, according to a new analysis of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) actions.
The City watchdog carried out 20 such raids in 2013, according to law firm RPC, up from 11 in 2012.
The jump in searches was in part driven by the FCA’s crackdown on boiler room scams, where unlicenced brokers use high-pressure selling tactics in a bid to persuade investors to buy stock at an over-valued price.
The crackdown saw 110 people arrested across Europe, the UK and the US last month in a series of co-ordinated raids.
RPC said the focus on one set of crimes should not detract from other areas of investigation.
“It is important that the FCA meets its consumer protection remit by cracking down on boiler room frauds but it is crucial that it doesn’t lose momentum in tackling complex financial crime like insider dealing,” said lawyer Richard Burger.
“The victims of insider dealing may not be as visible as boiler room scams but that doesn’t make it any less important.”