Almost all firms and individuals carrying out financial services activities in the UK have to be authorised or registered by us. This firm is not authorised or registered by us but has been targeting people in the UK, claiming to be an authorised firm.

This is what we call a ‚clone firm‘; and fraudsters usually use this tactic when contacting people out of the blue, so you should be especially wary if you have been cold called. They may use the name of the genuine firm, the ‚firm reference number‘ (FRN) we have given the authorised firm or other details.

You can find out more about this scam tactic and how to protect yourself from clone firms.

Clone firm details

Fraudsters are using or giving out the following details as part of their tactics to scam people in the UK:

Marc Finance (clone of firm)

Address: Badenerstrasse, 8048 Zurich, Switzerland

Telephone: +41 44 551 97 09

Email: admin@marcfinance.com

Website: www.marcfinance.com

Be aware that the scammers may give out other false details or mix these with some correct details of the registered firm.

Genuine firm details

This genuine firm relates to the BNP Paribas Group and is an entity with no employees which does not conduct business with clients or offer investment opportunities. This genuine firm that fraudsters are claiming to work for has no association with the ‘clone firm’.

Firm Name: Marc Finance Ltd

Address: PO Box 1093 GT, Queensgate House, South Church Street, George Town, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

How to protect yourself

We strongly advise you to only deal with financial firms that are authorised by us, and check the Financial Services Register to ensure they are. It has information on firms and individuals that are, or have been, regulated by us.

If a firm does not appear on the Register but claims it does, contact our Consumer Helpline on 0800 111 6768.

There are more steps you should take to avoid scams and unauthorised firms.

You should also be aware that if you give money to an unauthorised firm, you will not be covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service (link is external) or Financial Services Compensation Scheme (link is external) (FSCS) if things go wrong.

Report a clone firm

If you think you have been approached by an unauthorised or clone firm, or contacted about a scam, you should contact us. If you were offered, bought or sold shares, you can use our reporting form.

What to do if your firm is cloned

If you think your authorised firm has been cloned or scammers are fraudulently using your name or other details, contact our Firm Helpline on 0300 500 0597.