We've given Refundee a new look, learn more.
Started as a bond investment, then led to a cryptocurrency scam
Published September 2, 20260 min read
Amount lost
£231,000
Amount recovered
£115,000
Duration
9 months
Our client initially saw an advertisement on social media for a bond investment, where they could earn large and passive returns with their investment. Our client inserted their details to find out more and they were then contacted by a person claiming to be a ‘broker’. They persuaded our client to invest a small amount at first, which they did, and they made a profit and were allowed to withdraw their funds successfully.
Once the scammers built the initial trust, they presented further investments - this time in cryptocurrency. They claimed they could earn much larger returns in crypto and they should capitalise on this opportunity.
Our client was persuaded to invest £50,000 at first, which they saw increase drastically through the scammers’ fake platform. They continued to pressure our client into investing further, and even pressured them to borrow from friends and family and take out loans or credit cards.
Everything looked good with the investment and it was making money, until...
The scammers disappeared
Once our client had invested a substantial amount of funds, the scammers disappeared and cut all contact with them, leaving our client looking for answers and realising they had just been the victim of a scam.
Our client, looking for answers on how to recover their funds, found Refundee at the time when they needed us the most.
We provided care, support and guidance, helping them gather evidence and conducting a thorough investigation into what happened.
Utilising our experience within UK banking regulations, we submitted a bespoke report to our client’s bank to recover the scammed money.
The bank rejected the claim and we escalated the case to the Financial Ombudsman. Unfortunately, the investigator at the FOS agreed with the bank and claimed the bank was not at fault.
You may think all was lost, however our expert FOS team conducted a further review and submitted an appeal to the Ombudsman. The result? The Ombudsman found in our favour and instructed the bank to pay back £115,000 that our client thought was gone for good.
Summary
A fake bond investment built trust before the scammers moved our client into crypto and a £231,000 loss. The bank and the FOS investigator both said no. Our appeal to the Ombudsman overturned that decision and recovered £115,000.
New here? We're Refundee.
We help victims of fraud get their money back from their bank. FCA regulated. No win, no fee.
Recent recoveries
Impersonation Scam
Refundee recovers £26,000 for client who fell victim to a Richard Branson impersonation scam
An online advert showing a Richard Branson impersonator promised to teach our client how to trade. After several deposits that appeared to grow, the scammers demanded withdrawal fees our client could not pay. We escalated to the Financial Ombudsman and recovered £26,000 of the £32,000 lost.
Published Date
Impersonation Scam
Refundee recovers £63,000 for celebrity impersonation scam victim
A video of a well-known celebrity promoting an investment drew our client into a fake trading platform. An early withdrawal built trust, then scammers demanded fees to release the profit and cut contact. The bank rejected the claim. We escalated to the Financial Ombudsman and recovered £63,000.
Published Date
Impersonation Scam
Refundee recovers £13,000 for HMRC impersonation scam victim
Letters bearing HMRC branding told our client they owed overdue tax and faced criminal proceedings. The phone number led to scammers, who demanded immediate payment or the police would be called. We built the case under APP fraud rules, escalated to the Financial Ombudsman and recovered £13,000.
Published Date