Is this a scam?

harvestmoon

I recently received a letter from City Financial Investment Company Ltd saying they need to confirm my tax status. They then go on to say that new regulations require a fund(not named) in which I invest to establish whether I am a reportable person for the purposes of the regulations. Given that any income I have from any source has been put on my tax returns why would I give this information to a company not known to me? My gut feeling is that this is a scam - any comments would be appreciated.
Has anybody out there heard of this company or had any similar dealings with this company?

alanq

harvestmoon wrote: »

Has anybody out there heard of this company ?

"City Financial Limited is not in any way affiliated with City Financial Investment Company Limited which is an authorised firm (FRN: 189302) that is not a loans company and does not carry out any consumer credit business."
So a legitimate business of that name exists.

"The firm primarily provides its services to UK mutual funds and separately managed accounts."
http://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=45090909

What questions are they asking?

pelirocco

If they are not known you , then it's probably a safe bet it's a scam

Enterprise_1701C

If you invest with a fund, contact the fund manager directly to find out.

Keep_pedalling

This may not be a scam, the US is keen to catch up with its citizens who have been avoiding taxes by residing out of the US, so this company may simply be trying to establish if you really are not a US citizen.

What exactly are they asking for?

pollypenny

Why post on two boards?

harvestmoon

Pollypenny
Thank you for your message.
I posted on two boards because the problem didn't fit into any single category that I could find. There wasn't a 'SCAM' category in any of the forums that I could see.
As I am a regular viewer of Over 50's and Old Style I thought it might be the case that I would get a response in either/or.
I apologise if that created an issue for you.

On a more positive note.............many thanks to all who have offered me advice and provided helpful responses. I also hope that I may have done someone a favour by bringing a potential scammer's name to the attention of of other readers!

ICATQ

I am always dubious of any type of 'mail shot'. If I wanted to invest then I would seek out a fund through a reputable source. Sounds like they are fishing/phishing for information.

Just because it is registered as a company doent make it legit, just a little bit more accountable up to a point, ie you can identify who owns the company on paper.

agrinnall

They seem to be a legitimate company, do you invest through any of the funds/managers listed on their Partners page?

http://www.cityfinancial.co.uk/

I suspect that Keep pedalling has the right answer, the wording you mention seems similar to what we have seen in other posts about US tax information requirements on the Cutting Tax board.