UK. FCA targets pension scammers in Welsh steelworks

Britain’s markets watchdog is sending supervisors to Wales to make sure that 15 billion pounds in steelworker pensions does not become a “honey pot” for crooks. The move — made public at a parliamentary committee meeting on Wednesday — is part of a broader crackdown by the Financial Conduct Authority to avert pension scams across Britain following changes in the law.

Since 2015, Britain has made it possible for people to cash in their pension pots rather than waiting until retirement, resulting in people getting cold calls about taking the money.

Christopher Woolard, the FCA’s director of strategy and competition, was accused by MPs sounding a “tad complacent” about the potential for scams. But quizzed by parliament’s Work and Pensions Select Committee, he sought to reassure the MPs the watchdog was taking action — including for the steelworkers’s pensions.

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