10% -15% per annum fixed term savings

chesky369

Gymslim - how nice, a first poster - you're not Andymk's brother are you?

morg_monster

hm i like how andymk went offline about a minute before gymslim posted his message... this is such a crock!

from allwhois.com (I've starred out the address since it seems to be residential...)

Domain name:
zarksavings.co.uk

Registrant:
Zark Group

Trading as:
Zark Group

Registrant type:
UK Entity

Registrant's address:
**************
1
Rochdale
OL12 ***
United Kingdom

Registrant's agent:
Register.com Inc t/a British Telecom [Tag = BTNAMES]
URL: http://www.btconnect.com

Relevant dates:
Registered on: 19-Feb-2007
Renewal date: 19-Feb-2009
Last updated: 19-Feb-2007

Registration status:
Registered until renewal date.

Name servers:
dns01.gpn.register.com
dns02.gpn.register.com
dns03.gpn.register.com
dns04.gpn.register.com
dns05.gpn.register.com

WHOIS lookup made at 17:25:41 26-Mar-2007

hammodt

Hi,

Must admit this looks suspicious to me. The site has a very unprofessional design, and as fellow posters have correctly pointed out above, Zark has no FSA authorisation/registration, and the company number is fake. The returns seem a bit high, and if they are not registered with FSA then they are not guaranteed by the deposit protection scheme, and hence the deposits cannot be "guaranteed". There is every chance that you could lose your money if you invest in Zark, regardless of whether the company is operated in good faith or not.

A quick search reveals Zark Saving's address is:

28 Wickentree Holt
Rochdale
OL12 7PQ
United Kingdom

Which interestingly is where Andrew B Marshall (and Kelsey J Marshall) live. Would that be AndyMK by any chance?! If it is AndyMK, then he has broken MSE rules by not declaring an interest in a company he is promoting.

It is true that Andrew B Marshall IS the director of a company, but that doesn't mean that this venture is legitimately operated. I must point out that I am not suggesting Andrew B Marshall (or the person behind Zark if my facts are incorrect) is trying to deceive people, or is doing anything illegal... I am just providing the facts so that people can make their own minds up.

With regards to AndyMK's comments about FSA regulation, activities such as accepting deposits from the general public, in return for guaranteed returns WOULD require authorisation from the FSA by law. Company directors carrying out these activities without proper FSA authorisation face fines and prison sentences if convicted. Furthermore, if (and I'm not saying they ARE) Zark were deliberately defrauding the public (e.g. if they did not intend to make these returns) then additional charges could be brought for fraud, which would result in significantly increased jail sentences IF convicted.

It appears that the appropriate departments within the FSA have been informed by skid112 about Zark, so we should hopefully hear back from skid112 soon as to whether or not the FSA have granted Zark permission to operate.

Until we hear from the FSA that Zark is fully above-board, my personal advice is to NOT INVEST your money as there could be a significant risk of losing it.

If anyone needs any further advice (I used to be a registered Money Service Business - regulated by HMRC, but have also had dealings with the FSA) just send me a PM.

David

P.S Sorry for repeating some of the stuff morg_monster said... I started writing this message before morg_monster posted his... honest!!

skid112

oh dear seems the web site is gone wonder why?

masonic

So, is this the first time someone has gone to the trouble of setting up a phishing site for us lucky MSEers?

hammodt

The FSA will still have to investigate, even though the site is down, because people have already invested - see posts above. Good that noone else will fall for it if it was a scam though!

I think Andrew B Marshall can expect a knock on the door from the police very soon!

David

EdInvestor

What a timewaster:(

mroller

Hey AndyMK,

Don't try to destroy any evidence, you are gonna worsen your case

1jim

all seems to have gone quiet now....wonder if there has been a knock on the door yet

free4440273

...perhaps this generous institution is waiting to pass on the next increase rate rise to its customers. on that basis - all things being equal - the thread title might be '15% -20% per annum fixed term savings'.