It relied on some of the biggest brands in global finance: HSBC, Citi, UBS, Nomura and Pimco, and even Australia’s infrastructure giant, IFM Investors.
However, the financial regulator and the police claim that behind the brands are several local identities who appear to be linked to a UK-based operation that has taken more than $100 million from victims in the past two years.
For the purposes of this story, some victims’ names have been changed.
Among the Australians under suspicion are an American-born consultant who lives in Sydney’s Woolloomooloo, a Greek food importer in Melbourne, an Iraqi-born builder in Western Sydney and a Victorian barrister.
A page from the bogus IFM prospectus showing the company’s chief risk officer outlining consumer protections.
Working out how the whole operation fits together turned into a six-month chase by a team of investigators at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission; one that ended in urgent efforts to arrange travel bans and dramatic dawn raids.
But it began with an email to The Australian Financial Review newsroom in the slow days of January, between New Year and Australia Day at the start of this year.
Anatomy of a scam
“Have you seen this?” read the January 13 email from one of our market sources.
Attached was a 27-page prospectus issued by big Australian asset manager IFM Investors for a “High-Yield Fixed-Rate Corporate Bond” that promised excellent returns. They ranged from 4.62 per cent over one year…
