Central Bank of Ireland Issues Warning on Unauthorised Firm – Fraudulent entity clones Central Bank of Ireland authorised firm Alpha Finance Ood

It has come to the Central Bank of Ireland’s (‘Central Bank’) attention that a fraudulent firm has cloned the details of a Central Bank authorised firm, Alpha Finance Ood, and has been operating as a Retail Credit Firm in the State in the absence of an appropriate authorisation.  The fraudulent entity is using the same name as the legitimately authorised firm, Alpha Finance Ood, and advertised loans on its website but it holds no authorisation from the Central Bank as a Retail Credit Firm. This scam is an example of an ‘advance fee fraud’, where an upfront payment fee is sought prior to a loan being provided. The loans are never provided.

The unauthorised firm is operating the website https://alphafinanceood.com/ and the contact information used by this unauthorised firm includes:

• the email address: 
• [email protected]   
• the telephone number:
• +353 1 254 4697

The unauthorised entity, Alpha Finance Ood, has cloned the details (name and Central Bank registration details) of a legitimate firm authorised by the Central Bank and it should be noted that there is no connection whatsoever between the Central Bank authorised firm and the scam entity that has cloned its details.

The scam entity is connected to other fraudulent entities similarly carrying out advance fee fraud scams under the names:

• Ark Finance;
• Balanced Finance;
• Blackstone Financing Ltd;
• Bridging Loans;
• City-County Finance;
• Finance One Ltd; and
• First Start Finance Limited.
  

A list of unauthorised firms published to date is available on the Central Bank website.

It is a criminal offence for an unauthorised firm / person to provide financial services in Ireland that would require an authorisation under the relevant legislation, which the Central Bank is the responsible body for enforcing.  Consumers should check the Central Bank registers online to find out if a firm / person they are dealing with is authorised.  Consumers should be wary of advertisements offering loans from unauthorised firms or persons.

There are some general steps that individuals should take before dealing with firms / persons which purport to offer financial services:

• If you are buying a financial product such as a loan, insurance, investment or pension, or engaging a financial service such as investment advice, only deal with a Central Bank authorised firm / person – check our Register to see if the firm / person is registered. Always access the Register from our website, rather than through links in emails or on a firm’s / person’s website. 
• Always double-check the URL and contact details of a firm / person in case it is a ‘clone firm / person’ pretending to be an authorised firm / person, such as your bank or a genuine investment firm.
• Check the list of unauthorised firms.  If the firm / person is not on our list, do not assume it is legitimate – it may not have been reported to the Central Bank yet.
• Check that the product being offered to you is present on the website of the legitimate firm.
• If you are considering buying a financial product or dealing with a firm, through a website or social media, or if you receive an unsolicited phone call, email, text message or pop-up box out of the blue, take the SAFE test.
• For further information, please visit the Avoiding Scams and Unauthorised Activity section of the Central Bank’s website.
  

Please remember:

• the Central Bank will never contact you asking for money, your personal data or your PPS number; and
• if you are offered something that seems too good to be true, it is most likely a scam.
  

Any person wishing to contact the Central Bank with information regarding such firms / persons may telephone (01) 224 4000.  This line is also available to the public to check if a firm is authorised.

Ends

Notes to editors

The name of the above firm is published under Section 53 of the Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Act 2013.