B ank Fraud

It is crucial to take legal advice as soon as possible if there is a possibility an investigation will be launched or allegations have been made concerning bank fraud.

Banking fraud is a common type of fraud and many people will have been touched by some kind of banking fraud. On a consumer level, there are many different types of banking fraud scams designed to take money from depositors’ accounts, while there are others which use more complex means, such as accounting fraud and the LIBOR scandal, where some banks reported false interest rates to benefit their derivatives traders.

We represent, providing advice and assistance, in all types of fraud that can be associated with a bank or other financial institution, including:

• Account takeover fraud
• Authorised push payment fraud
• Banking details being stolen due to hacking, phishing or other means
• Bank account fraud
• Bank card fraud including Credit card fraud and credit card cloning
• Bribery and corruption
• Card payment fraud
• Cheque fraud
• Counterfeit cheque fraud
• Email fraud
• False accounting fraud
• Fraud by abuse of position
• Fraud by failing to disclose information
• Insider dealing
• Land banking fraud
• LIBOR (London Inter Bank Offered Rate) / rate fixing
• Mobile banking fraud
• Money laundering
• Mortgage fraud
• Prime bank guarantee fraud

These investigations are extremely thoroughly investigated and can cause immense disruption to a business, and individuals, who are the subject matter of those investigations. These investigations may cause irreparable damage to reputations.

Essentially, the investigation and prosecution teams will be seeking for evidence in order to establish and prove there was a bank fraud. These offences are commonly prosecuted as offences of conspiracy to defraud or fraud by false representation. It could also include specific regulatory or money laundering offences.

Quite often, bank fraud investigations can be complex and cross different jurisdictions.

Belgravia Solicitors can advise you and liaise with authorities which may be involved in a bank fraud investigation, including the following:

• The Police Service (including the City of London Police)
• Trading Standards
• Department for Work & Pensions (DWP)
• Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)
• Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
• HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC)
• Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
• National Crime Agency (NCA)
• Serious Fraud Office (SFO)

At Belgravia Solicitors we robustly challenge the evidence presented, where necessary challenging the procedures undertaken to obtain the evidence, challenge the admissibility of the evidence and ensure the evidence, a bank fraud investigation case is built upon, is not misinterpreted and fight your corner to give you the best chance of achieving the result you want from your case.

We will always ensure that the evidence is properly considered and will instruct appropriate experts on your behalf when evidence needs to be obtained, challenged, further examined, or excluded.

If you, your business / company, a family member / relative, or a friend are accused of bank fraud, it is important to seek legal advice. Discussing your case with a specialist lawyer who understands the offence of bank fraud at an early stage is essential to help understand what can be done to prepare a proper defence. We can be contacted on 03330 16 96 16 or on email: mail@belgraviasolicitors.co.uk