Yahoo Finance ‘Beware’: Global bank’s warning to over 1 million Aussies
Global bank Citibank has issued an email warning to customers about scammers pretending to offer a sophisticated type of high-return investment.
An email seen by Yahoo Finance from Citibank, which has more than 1 million Australian customers, warns: “beware of imposter bond scams”.
“Please be aware of scammers posing as Citi or other financial institutions offering high yield bond investments,” states the email from Citibank acting head of retail bank Richard Wilde.
According to ASIC, scammers pretend to be reputable financial service firms and offer high-yield investments to investors.
People may be fooled by professional-looking fake prospectuses, pretending that the bonds are issued by major financial institutions, when they are not; false claims that the bond purchase price is being protected by the Government; and more.
Victims are then asked to fill out a fake online enquiry form expressing interest in receiving investment advice.
But the form asks them to submit their personal and banking details.
“The scam may involve individuals being asked to complete an application form and scan their ID documents before being directed to pay funds into a bank account.”
However, Aussies should know these aren’t legitimate.
“These are not genuine Citi communications and customers are advised to stay alert, cautious and not to respond or take any action requested in these malicious emails,” the email states.
What to do
If you’ve seen a scam spoofing Citibank, get in touch with the Citi Security Team on 1300 550 216 or forward suspicious emails onto spoof@citicorp.com.
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