Advance-fee fraud targets businesses looking for finance. A criminal offers an attractive loan, then claims you must pay a fee first to release the funds, cover insurance, or unlock a better rate. Once you pay, the loan never arrives and the fraudster disappears.
How to recognise it
- You are asked to pay something before any money is advanced to your company.
- The offer arrives out of the blue, often by email, text or social media.
- The terms sound unusually generous or the approval is suspiciously quick with no checks.
- You are pushed to pay by an unusual method or to a personal account.
How we actually work
We lend to UK limited companies and LLPs for business purposes, and we assess each application properly. The cost of borrowing is set out clearly in the offer we make to you, based on the rate and term shown there. Anyone demanding a separate up-front payment to release a Credicorp loan is not us.
If you have been targeted
- Do not make any payment.
- Keep the message and any account details you were given.
- Report it to Action Fraud and let us know through a verified channel so we can warn others.
See also: Can my company make a partial payment if it cannot pay in full?, Can my company pay ahead to build a buffer? and Protecting your business from social media and messaging scams.