The Financial Conduct Authority is prosecuting five people for involvement in an alleged £1.2m ‘binary options’ investment fraud between 2016 and 2020 and an attempted cover up in 2022.
Cameron Vickers, Raheel Mirza, Opeyemi Solaja, Reuben Akpojaro and Taheer Sardar have all been charged.
Cameron Vickers, Raheel Mirza, Opeyemi Solaja (also known as Opeyemi Olaja) are alleged to have run a London-based company called Bespoke Markets Group which defrauded £1.2 million from UK investors.
It is alleged that that money raised was used to fund their lifestyles, rather than the binary options investments that were advertised.
Each have been charged with offences under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA), the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and an offence of conspiracy to defraud contrary to common law.
In May 2022, Reuben Akpojaro, who also worked at Bespoke Markets Group, was charged with the same offences relating to the scheme.
The defendants face a maximum two years’ imprisonment if found guilty of breaches of Section 19 of FSMA and could face a fine and/or up to 14 years’ imprisonment if found guilty of money laundering.
Following an application at Southwark Crown Court on 31 October 2022, two prosecutions for alleged investment fraud will be heard as a single trial of four defendants. It is listed to start on 6 February 2023 with a six to eight weeks time estimate.
Last month, a further charge was brought against Raheel Mirza and a fifth individual, Taheer Sardar, for perverting the course of justice relating to the FCA’s investigation. The FCA alleges that between 31 July 2022 and the 1 October 2022, the two men created a false document to influence the case.
Their case was adjourned until 16 November 2022 for a Plea and Trial Preparation Hearing.
Binary options are a high-risk ‘all-or-nothing’ type of investment, the watchdog said, which have been banned for retail use since 2019. The investor will attempt to predict whether an event will happen or not. If they win, they’ll see a return, but if they’re wrong, they’ll lose all their investment.
As part of the FCA’s three-year strategy, the regulator is committed to reducing and preventing conduct that can cause serious harm. The FCA recently announced that it had placed restrictions on twice as many firms in the investment market compared to last year.
