London-based crypto advisory firm, Amey Finance Academy Ltd., has been ordered to shut down by the UK government’s Insolvency Service. The firm, led by Desmond Amey, claimed to be a specialist in wealth creation and assured customers that their cryptocurrency investments were safe. However, recent customer statements have shown that this was not the case, leading to suspicions about the firm’s activities. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) identified Amey Finance Academy as an unauthorized provider of financial services and warned the public not to engage with them.
Amey, the founder of the firm, has not responded to requests for comment. Despite presenting itself as an established and successful consultancy, the company misled customers with false guarantees and made misleading investment claims. For example, Amey assured one customer that their investment would not go below 90%. In addition, the firm promoted cryptocurrency schemes conducted by other companies and even released a video on YouTube claiming that their office was still operational, despite being evicted earlier that year.
The Insolvency Service found that Amey Finance Academy lacked transparency and failed to provide sufficient accounting records, preventing further investigation into the handling of £5m ($6.2m) from October 2019 to March 2022. As a result, the service requested the closure of the firm to protect the public from opaque and objectionable practices.
In a separate investigation, the UK’s National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) shut down 43 websites suspected of being involved in crypto phishing scams. The investigation revealed a fake email address that targeted Blockchain.com customers in an attempt to exploit security weaknesses and steal cryptocurrency.
