MCO Capital loan

grahamqat

Thanks for that Alan. I think it appears as a separate web-site as there are missing links and you can't navigate through all of it at the moment. Also helploan.co.uk is a valid address so it may have one time been used, but it takes you straight to the secure site. Interesting point you make about the mandatory account name field. As you say you didn't need to supply an account name to get a loan so they could have just been regular pre-existing accounts.

GomerPyle

I only gave details of how the old site could be used for fraud because it was disabled, and I find it incomprehensible that anyone could ever reinstate it without a major rehash. Their site never was never viable and I'll personally make sure that the authorities and any organisations they deal with are informed if they try to make this elephant fly again.

If MCO Capital haven't already demonstrated that they have no competence in the field of credit provision already, then any hint that they be about to launch another catastrophic attack on the UK financial market should be enough to have their CCA licence cancelled.

The OFT should be mindful of the expression 'fool me once shame on you - fool me twice shame on me' and any repetition of this fiasco will put the OFT's neck firmly on the block when it comes to appotioning blame second time round, though quite what they were doing licencing an organisation whose interest rates ran into seven figures is beyond comprehension.

The OFT appears not to do what it says on the can.

Being serious - any reincarnation of the website will have every schoolboy prankster and different level of fraudster probing it, so it better be good. If we are to believe what we're told, only one fraudster out of 9.000 is liable to be arrested, so the risk is small.

I can't wait.

geomacl

The following email received from OFT today:

Complaint Against: Mobile Credit Online Capital Limited
Licence No: 613263

Thank you for your email of 8 November 2010.
Under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 it is the responsibility of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) as licensing authority to monitor and regulate those businesses involved in consumer lending or related credit activities. We consider the fitness and competence of businesses which apply for a consumer credit licence and continue to monitor the fitness and conduct of those which are licensed. MCO Capital Ltd (MCO) currently holds a valid licence (No.613263) under its former name, Mobile Credit Online Capital Ltd. MCO have recently applied to vary the name on their licence to MCO Capital Ltd.
The OFT cannot disclose details regarding any action that we may take against MCO or whether we propose to or are currently investigating MCO due to legal restrictions relating to disclosure of information. Under Part 9 of the Enterprise Act 2002 the OFT is restricted from providing information regarding potential or ongoing investigations or any enforcement action that may potentially be taken against a trader. Therefore disclosure of restricted information would be a breach of the Enterprise Act 2002 and is a criminal offence.
I can confirm that the OFT is aware that fraudsters have targeted a number of consumers and MCO and have fraudulently obtained loans. MCO, being unaware that it has been a victim of fraud, has then contacted the consumer seeking repayment of the loan.
The criminal matter is under investigation by the City of London Police and the OFT is working with the criminal investigation in order to inform our own regulatory role. On the 11 November 2010 the City of London Police reported that they had made an arrest.
As you have noted in your email the National Fraud Authority (NFA) provides a website (www.actionfraud.org.uk) that gives advice on how to manage and report incidents of suspected fraud. This information is then fed to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB). The Action Fraud website currently has a dedicated page providing advice to consumers on how to deal with letters from MCO. This page can be accessed from its home page and advice is regularly updated. The current advice is to write to:
Intrum Justitia Ltd, 5th Floor, The Plaza, 100 Old Hall Street, Liverpool, L3 9QJ.
The letter should include the consumer’s name and address and confirm that they did not take out the loan. No other information is required.
The OFT encourage consumers affected by letters from MCO to visit this website to obtain the most up to date advice.
Consumers may also wish to obtain their credit reference file in order to ascertain if this or any other fraudulent applications have been made. The three main credit reference agencies are:
· Experian: www.experian.co.uk
· Equifax: www.equifax.co.uk
· Call Credit: www.callcredit.co.uk

The Information Commissioner’s Office has published a booklet ‘Credit Explained’ which sets out the process for accessing a credit reference file as well as highlighting actions that can be taken to rectify (if required) any wrong information held. This can be accessed at:
www.ico.gov.uk/upload/documents/library/data_protection/practical_application/
credit_explained_leaflet_2005.pdf

Similar to the advice from Action Fraud, the OFT would reiterate that consumers should not pay any money to MCO in respect of a loan that they have not taken out.

There are legal restrictions on the OFT relating to disclosure of information. However, the outcome of any formal action, including the imposition of requirements or financial penalties or the removal of a licence, is made available on the OFT’s Consumer Credit Register (CCR). The CCR can be accessed from the OFT website at: www.oft.gov.uk/consumercreditregister

Thank you once again for taking the time to write to us.
Yours sincerely
Oxxxxx Exxxxxxxxx
Enquiries and Reporting Centre
Office of Fair Trading



I hope that fellow forum members find this as useful as I did :cool::rotfl:

GomerPyle

Clearly the OFT have lost sight of their purpose if they think licencing imported Scandinavian barmpot's to impose million per cent interest on loans to the impoverished inhabitants of the UK, is a good reason for their existence.

If you judge people by the company they keep, or the organisations they licence, then the OFT decision will be interesting as a guide to their efficacy.

grahamqat

Hi Geomacl, I got a generic letter from OFT a bit like that. I'm surprised they are not too embarrassed to mention the " We consider the fitness and competence of businesses which apply for a consumer credit licence and continue to monitor the fitness and conduct of those which are licensed". I always thought that this meant companies needed a high level of competence to get a consumer credit licence. Silly me, they must be requiring a very low or zero level instead. Loan sharks are illegal - why the hell are they being licensed? I also note in passing that MCO Capital is not licensed, only the former name is. You are right Gomer - the OFT is not carrying out its most basic of objectives - to protect the consumer.

Prudence2_2

geomacl wrote: »

I hope that fellow forum members find this as useful as I did :cool::rotfl:

Thanks for sharing. How is it possible to use so many words to say so little? Do you think that OFT employees go on a special course to learn this skill?

Prudence2_2

grahamqat wrote: »

" We consider the fitness and competence of businesses which apply for a consumer credit licence and continue to monitor the fitness and conduct of those which are licensed".

Perhaps the key is that they CONSIDER fitness and competence and MONITOR fitness and conduct - but don't actually do anything!

geomacl

Gomer, Grahamqat and Prudence2 (or 3) - your responses to the OFT sum up my feelings entirely. As I understand it MCO are licensed to provide "Cheque Cashing Services" (they haven't done much of that in this case??) and not to "canvass off trade premises" (what premises, I ask?). Does a web site not count as canvassing off trade premises?
Maybe the OFT will put a stop to this by refusing to allow them to vary their licence as presently applied for and then to declare the current licence null and void? Then again someone told me that cows can fly????
I hope that the OFT representative monitoring this site takes note of both the nature of the comments and the strength of feeling about the lack of suitability of MCO to have such a licence.

geomacl

The plot thickens!!!! See:

http://www.actionfraud.org.uk/mco-capital-limited-sep10

************************************************
""""Latest on MCO Capital - 19 November 2010

The City of London Police has made three further arrests as they continue their investigation into a major loans repayment fraud against MCO Capital.
In an early morning operation spread across locations in South London and Hertfordshire detectives arrested two men and one woman on suspicion of money laundering.
The two men, aged 41 and 21, and the woman, 21, were taken to a City of London Police station and later released on bail.
Later the same day the 24-year-old man, Adeleke Ogunsanwo, was charged with offences unrelated to MCO Capital:

• Possession of False identity documents with intent to commit fraud - Identity Cards Act 2006
• Possess/control article for use in fraud - Fraud Act 2006

Ogunsanwo, from Camberwell in South London, appeared at City of London Magistrates on November 19 and enquiries continue into his suspected involvement with the MCO fraud.
The police action follows on from last week's operation where detectives arrested a 42-year-old man at his Dagenham home on suspicion of fraud by false representation.
Further action is anticipated, with detectives now aware of more than 9,000 alleged fraudulent loan applications made to the Finnish based-company.
This followed on from a significant amount of reports originally received via Action Fraud, the national fraud reporting centre, and analysed by the NFIB.
Detective Inspector Perry Stokes said:

'We are committed to taking the swift action that will move this investigation forwards as quickly as possible. We believe this to be a major fraud that has affected thousands of people across the UK, and our enquiries are ongoing.!!!8221;
The City of London Police, which is the National Lead Force for fraud, are sending out letters to those whose personal details have been used as part of this fraud.""""


************************************************

I assume that the reference to a 24 year old man should have read 21 year old man"? Or the ages of those arrested are wrong?

Has anyone on this forum whose "personal details have been used as part of this fraud" received a letter from the CoLP? I have not.
Googling "Adeleke Ogunsanwo" is an exercise in futility:cool:

AndAnotherOne

Just popped into the forum to catch-up on what's been happening (or not) over the last 2 months, and I find that there have been some arrests!

Including a 42 year old man from an address in Dagenham. Forum members with long memories may recall that I mentioned that I'd uncovered a false "linked address" when I did my Experian credit check. (Post #194 29/9/10).

I reported it at the time in my crime report through Action Fraud before making my post. And that address was in ...........


Dagenham!

It would be interesting to know if the two addresses are the same. And if so, what the authorities have been doing all this time.....