Santander’s Shadowy Twin Triggers FCA Warning

<p>Are you a
customer of Santander Bank? In that case, you should be wary of a clone
impersonating the international institution on the Internet. This week, the
UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued a warning about the dishonest
entity, cautioning consumers against another clone in the UK market.</p><p>Beware of Santander Bank
Finance</p><p>According
to the <a href="https://www.fca.org.uk/news/warnings/santander-bank-finance-wwwsantanderbank-financescom-clone-fca-authorised-firm">FCA
warning</a> published yesterday (Tuesday), an entity operating in the British
market called Santander Bank Finance offers financial and banking services
through the website santanderbank-finances.com, impersonating the
regulator-licensed and globally recognized Santander Bank. </p><p>Although
the clone company's site should immediately raise a red flag for consumers, the
FCA noted that the fake entity uses the contact details of the original
institution and may try to reach out to individuals in Great Britain and
Europe.</p><p>This is
how the clone's site, Santander Bank Finance, appears:</p><p>And this
is what the original Santander Bank's UK site looks like:</p><p>"If
you deal with this firm, you won't have access to the Financial Ombudsman
Service if you have a complaint. You also won't be protected by the Financial
Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) if things go wrong. This means it's
unlikely you'd get your money back if the firm goes out of business," the
<a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/fca/" target="_blank" rel="follow">FCA </a>reminded in its official statement.</p><p>Below
are the contact details provided by the clone firm:</p><blockquote><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Watch out for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Santander?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Santander</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bank?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Bank</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/clone?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#clone</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/company?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#company</a>! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FCA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FCA</a> published details of the fraudulent firm: <a href="https://t.co/TByJXmyc7S">pic.twitter.com/TByJXmyc7S</a></p>— Damian Chmiel (@ChmielDk) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChmielDk/status/1722200652779278565?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 8, 2023</a></blockquote><p>This is the
second time this month that the FCA has highlighted the activities of clone
firms. <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Finance Magnates</a> reported on 1 November that the regulator had
warned about the activities of an entity <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/forex/fca-issues-warning-against-saxo-bank-impersonators/" target="_blank" rel="follow">impersonating Saxo Bank</a>.</p><p>Why Clones Are Dangerous?</p><p><a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/clone/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Clone firms</a>
are fraudulent entities that mimic legitimate companies, often by using their
name, address, and Firm Reference Number to appear credible. They may
also copy the website design and branding of the genuine company they are
impersonating. </p><p>The danger
of clone firms lies in their deception. They exploit the public's trust in
legitimate financial institutions to defraud individuals. When dealing with
clone firms, individuals may believe they are investing in secure and
profitable financial products or services, but instead, they risk losing their
money to scams. </p><p>Additionally,
because these clone firms are not actually registered or regulated, victims
have very limited protection or recourse for the funds they may lose. This can
lead to significant financial loss. Consumers need to verify the legitimacy of
a company before engaging in any financial transactions, using official
regulatory websites or direct contact methods to ensure they are dealing with
the proper firm.</p>

This article was written by Damian Chmiel at www.financemagnates.com.