FCA warns after 4,465 impersonation scam reports in first half 2025

The Financial Conduct Authority has warned consumers after receiving 4,465 reports in the first half of 2025 of fraudsters impersonating the regulator, with about 480 people tricked into transferring money, the watchdog said. The scams, the FCA added, typically aim to extract funds or sensitive banking information such as account PINs and passwords, and almost two thirds of reports came from people aged 56 or older.

The regulator described several common tactics. Fraudsters have phoned or emailed victims claiming the FCA has recovered funds from a cryptocurrency wallet opened in their name, offering a false windfall and then seeking access to accounts. Another frequent ruse targets people who have already lost money to loan or investment scams, with criminals posing as the FCA and offering to help recover losses in exchange for further payments. A separate trend involves emails falsely stating a creditor has obtained a County Court Judgment and demanding payment to the FCA. The watchdog has also highlighted so called pig butchering schemes in which criminals groom victims, often via romance, then impersonate the regulator to extract a second tranche of funds.