I Would like your advice. I live in Ireland. (also, apologies for the length of the post).
Recently, I got cold-called at the office by a financial services company who had sent me a brochure. In what I would call a high pressure selling technique, I was offered shares at a discount to the current market price on the premise that they were an opening offer to a new client, on the basis that they would control the sell date. I assumed that this was some sort of trust. After about 30 minutes of 'selling', indicating offshore dollar account as an investor advantage amongst other things, an amount was mentioned but that I had to act today and I indicated that I might be interested in such an amount, ($5,000), but that I needed to check the firm out. The seller indicated that I could do so in the interim before he 'sent me some paper' by fax.
I checked the details over the next day and got extremely cold feet over risking my money to this guy. He rang me the next day and I said this but he didn't listen, saying that he just called to say the fax was on its way, and rang off. The day after, a share trade advice arrived showing that a trade had been made at the price indicated in my name. It had my name and home address on it and a time stamp of the trade as the time of the initial call and was accompanied by an account opening form. (I am still unsure as to how my details got to this company in the first place).
This was followed by a call to me during which I said that I was not satisfied with the bona fides of the company - I had located a warning from the Irish Central Bank that this company was not authorised to deal in Ireland and that I was therefore not covered by an investor compensation scheme if clients had 'trouble' with the company. I had also read their literature and investment advice and considered it a load of overblown hype and waffle. He said that they had bought and registered the shares in my name - something I don't understand either, as I thought he had originally said that they had (meaning they owned) a block of shares bought at a particular price.
I insisted that I had not agred to a trade until I checked the company out. He insisted that I have a verbal contract. I said we have not.
I have not sent back any note of any type since in relation to this trade and am not taking any more calls from these people - they are very insistent, calling me daily and repeatedly on my mobile from Zurich where they have an office in a trade centre (or maybe just a few phone lines).
Their company, which does not even have a web site, and is invisible on any 'google' search, is set up an 'offshore' operation in Montevideo Free trade zone, according to their overblown brochure.
The amusing part is that they can sell the shares currently for a profit of 25-20% as they were offering them at a discount in the first place - assuming that this was legitimate. (I think they originally said they had a preferential placement that they were giving to a select group of existing and new clients).
I am ignoring them and binning anything they send me on the basis that I suspect a scam.
However, assuming that this business is legit, and given that they have no legal status to operate in Ireland, or from the way in which the supposed 'sale' happened, do they have any real comeback against me in what they represent as a verbal agreement between us?
Thanks for your time.
Recently, I got cold-called at the office by a financial services company who had sent me a brochure. In what I would call a high pressure selling technique, I was offered shares at a discount to the current market price on the premise that they were an opening offer to a new client, on the basis that they would control the sell date. I assumed that this was some sort of trust. After about 30 minutes of 'selling', indicating offshore dollar account as an investor advantage amongst other things, an amount was mentioned but that I had to act today and I indicated that I might be interested in such an amount, ($5,000), but that I needed to check the firm out. The seller indicated that I could do so in the interim before he 'sent me some paper' by fax.
I checked the details over the next day and got extremely cold feet over risking my money to this guy. He rang me the next day and I said this but he didn't listen, saying that he just called to say the fax was on its way, and rang off. The day after, a share trade advice arrived showing that a trade had been made at the price indicated in my name. It had my name and home address on it and a time stamp of the trade as the time of the initial call and was accompanied by an account opening form. (I am still unsure as to how my details got to this company in the first place).
This was followed by a call to me during which I said that I was not satisfied with the bona fides of the company - I had located a warning from the Irish Central Bank that this company was not authorised to deal in Ireland and that I was therefore not covered by an investor compensation scheme if clients had 'trouble' with the company. I had also read their literature and investment advice and considered it a load of overblown hype and waffle. He said that they had bought and registered the shares in my name - something I don't understand either, as I thought he had originally said that they had (meaning they owned) a block of shares bought at a particular price.
I insisted that I had not agred to a trade until I checked the company out. He insisted that I have a verbal contract. I said we have not.
I have not sent back any note of any type since in relation to this trade and am not taking any more calls from these people - they are very insistent, calling me daily and repeatedly on my mobile from Zurich where they have an office in a trade centre (or maybe just a few phone lines).
Their company, which does not even have a web site, and is invisible on any 'google' search, is set up an 'offshore' operation in Montevideo Free trade zone, according to their overblown brochure.
The amusing part is that they can sell the shares currently for a profit of 25-20% as they were offering them at a discount in the first place - assuming that this was legitimate. (I think they originally said they had a preferential placement that they were giving to a select group of existing and new clients).
I am ignoring them and binning anything they send me on the basis that I suspect a scam.
However, assuming that this business is legit, and given that they have no legal status to operate in Ireland, or from the way in which the supposed 'sale' happened, do they have any real comeback against me in what they represent as a verbal agreement between us?
Thanks for your time.
