The short answer

Investment scams share the same warning signs: returns that are too high or "guaranteed", pressure to act quickly, unsolicited contact, requests to pay into a personal or unusual account, and secrecy. Genuine investments look different: your money goes to a well-known provider or platform and is held by an independent custodian; you get clear documents showing charges and risks; returns are realistic and never guaranteed; and nobody rushes you. Before investing, check who you're dealing with, where your money will be held, how the adviser is paid and what you can verify independently — and never pay on the strength of a call, a message or an app alone. If in doubt, get a second opinion. Lawrence offers a free one to any expat who's been offered an investment.

Why expats are targeted

Scammers go where the money is — and where people are a little less protected than usual. Expats tick several boxes at once:

• Lump sums to invest — pension cash, house sales, inheritances.
• Distance from home: no local branch, no family adviser down the road, different rules.
• A desire for better returns after years of low interest at home.
• Social trust: expat communities are friendly, and recommendations travel fast.
• Time: retirees especially have time to talk, which scammers use.
• Uncertainty about the rules in two countries, which makes complicated pitches harder to check.

None of this means expats are naive. Modern scams are slick, professional and designed by people who do this full time. Recognising that is the first step to staying safe.

The scams that target expats

Boiler rooms

Teams of persuasive salespeople cold-call investors with "exclusive" shares, pre-listing opportunities or bonds. South-East Asia has a long history of these operations. The calls are polished, the websites look professional, and the pressure to buy now is intense.

Clone firms

Scammers copy the name, address and website design of a genuine investment company, then direct you to pay into their own account. Because the company is real, online checks seem to confirm it.

Crypto and trading platforms

Slick apps and websites show your "investment" growing fast — until you try to withdraw. Often there's a fee to pay first, then another, and the money is never released.

Romance and friendship scams

A new contact online, sometimes over weeks or months, builds trust before mentioning an investment that's been "amazing" for them. Sometimes called "pig butchering", these scams cost victims enormous sums.

Ponzi schemes

Early investors are paid "returns" out of new investors' money, so the scheme looks successful — and recommendations spread through communities — until it collapses.

Exotic assets

Land banks, rare wine, carbon credits, gemstones, overseas property developments with guaranteed rents: assets that are hard to value and harder to sell, often sold at many times their real worth.

Fake apps and investment groups

Messaging groups and apps share "tips" and screenshots of profits, encouraging members to invest through a particular platform that is itself the scam.

Recovery scams

After a loss, victims are contacted by someone offering to recover their money — for an upfront fee. It's the same people, or their associates, coming back for more.

Genuine investment or scam? The differences

Genuine investments have features that scams can't easily copy. Look for every one of these.

A single warning sign is reason to stop and check. Two or more, and it's almost certainly a scam.

The warning signs

Every scam is different, but almost all of them show some of these signs:

1. Returns that are too good — especially high, steady monthly returns. Even the world's best investors have bad years.
2. "Guaranteed" or "no risk" — genuine growth investments are never guaranteed.
3. Unsolicited contact — a call, message, email or social media approach you didn't ask for.
4. Pressure to act now — limited places, a price that's about to rise, a "special" deadline.
5. Payment to an unusual account — a personal account, a different company name, a crypto wallet.
6. Secrecy — "don't tell your bank", "keep this between us", "your adviser won't understand".
7. Complexity you can't follow — if you can't explain it to a friend, don't invest.
8. Problems withdrawing — fees, taxes or "verification" charges before you can have your money back.

Our guide to protecting yourself from payment scams covers the wider scams aimed at expats in Thailand, from fake police calls to rental fraud.

How genuine investments keep your money safe

Understanding how real investments are set up is the best protection of all, because scams almost never work the same way.

Your money goes to the provider, not the adviser

When you invest through a genuine adviser, your money goes directly to a well-known insurer, platform or fund company — in your name. An adviser never asks you to pay investment money into their own account.

Your investments are held by an independent custodian

Genuine platforms and funds hold investors' assets with an independent custodian bank, separate from the company's own money. If the platform itself got into trouble, your investments would still be yours. Our guide to platform custody and administration explains how this works.

You can see your investments independently

You get your own login to the provider's platform and statements directly from them — not screenshots or reports from the person who sold to you.

Everything is in writing

A genuine recommendation comes with clear documents showing what you're buying, why, the risks and every charge.

Established jurisdictions add protection

Well-known international centres such as the Isle of Man, where policyholders are compensated up to 90% of an insurer's liability if it fails, add a further layer. Our guide to offshore investment structures covers the main ones.

Where to start

Someone to give you an honest second opinion, and safe, transparent ways to move your money.

Due diligence: checking an investment

Due diligence simply means checking before you commit. For any investment, work through these questions — and if you can't get clear answers, walk away:

• What exactly is it? Can you explain, in a sentence, what you're buying and how it makes money?
• Who provides it? Is it a well-known company you can find independently, with a long track record?
• Where will your money go? To the provider, in your name — or somewhere else?
• Who holds the assets? Is there an independent custodian?
• What are the risks? What could go wrong, and how much could you lose?
• What does it cost? Every charge, as a total yearly percentage and in pounds.
• How do you get out? How quickly, and at what cost?
• Can you check it yourself? Independent reviews, published reports, your own online access.

Due diligence: checking an adviser

A good adviser can be the best protection against scams — so it's worth knowing how to check one. Ask:

1. Who do you work for, and how long have you been advising expats?
2. What qualifications and experience do you have?
3. How are you paid — by fees, commission or both — and how much, in pounds?
4. Where will my money be held, and in whose name?
5. Will I have my own access to the provider's platform and statements?
6. Will I get your recommendation in writing, with the reasons and all charges?
7. What happens if I want to leave, or change adviser later?
8. Can I speak to existing clients about their experience?

A good adviser welcomes these questions and answers them clearly. Lawrence is happy to answer every one of them — and suggests you ask them of anyone you're thinking of investing with.

When the recommendation comes from a friend

Some of the most damaging scams spread by word of mouth. A friend at the golf club, a neighbour in the condo or a fellow expat on a Facebook group has been getting great returns and wants to share the good news. They're not lying — they genuinely believe it, because they've been paid. In a Ponzi scheme, early investors often are, until the money runs out.

A friend's success is never a substitute for checking. Run the same due diligence you would on a stranger's offer, and remember that being able to withdraw a little money early on doesn't prove an investment is genuine — it's often part of the plan. Being the one who asks the awkward questions can save not just your money but your friend's too.

Property schemes and "guaranteed" rents

Property is one of the most popular investments among expats — and most developers and agents in Thailand are perfectly genuine. But property is also a favourite setting for schemes that promise more than they can deliver: hotel rooms, holiday villas or overseas developments sold with "guaranteed" rental returns of 7%, 8% or more for years to come, often with buy-back promises.

A rental guarantee is only as good as the company giving it. If the scheme depends on new buyers to pay existing ones, or the guarantee is simply built into an inflated purchase price, the returns can stop as soon as sales slow — leaving owners with a unit worth far less than they paid and hard to sell.

Before buying into any scheme like this, ask:

• Who pays the guarantee, and how strong are their finances?
• How does the price compare with similar property nearby without a guarantee?
• What happens when the guarantee ends — what will the real rent be?
• Will you own the unit outright, with title in your name, under Thai foreign-ownership rules?
• Where does your deposit go — and is it protected in escrow until completion?

An independent lawyer in Thailand and escrow for your payments are the best protection when buying any property here. Our guide to escrow for Thai property explains how it works.

Protecting pensions and lump sums

Large sums attract the most sophisticated scams. Pension pots in particular are targeted with offers of "pension liberation", early access before 55, overseas transfers with unusual investments inside, and "free pension reviews" that lead to high-risk schemes.

• Never transfer a pension on the strength of an unsolicited call or message.
• Be wary of early access before the normal minimum pension age — it can mean heavy UK tax charges as well as losses.
• Check what the money will be invested in, not just the pension wrapper.
• Take your time: genuine pension decisions are never urgent.
• Get advice from someone you've checked before moving a pension or investing a lump sum.

A pension or a house sale may be the largest sum you ever invest. A free second opinion before you commit is the simplest insurance there is.

Simple habits that protect you

• Never act on unsolicited contact — hang up, delete the message, ignore the advert.
• Call companies back on a number you've found independently, not one they gave you.
• Never pay into a personal account or crypto wallet for an investment.
• Never share passwords or one-time codes, or let anyone take remote control of your device.
• Take 24 hours before any investment decision, however good the offer.
• Talk it through with family, a friend or an adviser you trust.
• Keep your investments with well-known providers you can access directly.
• Review your accounts regularly, and act quickly on anything you don't recognise.

If you think you've been scammed

Act fast — speed gives you the best chance of stopping further losses:

1. Stop paying immediately, whatever you're told about fees or penalties.
2. Call your bank on the number on your card, and ask them to stop or recall any payments.
3. In Thailand, call the Anti Online Scam Operation Center on 1441, which can work with banks to freeze accounts.
4. In the UK, report to Report Fraud on 0300 123 2040 (101 in Scotland).
5. Change passwords and secure your email and devices.
6. Keep every record — messages, emails, receipts, account details.
7. Beware recovery offers: anyone promising to get your money back for a fee is almost certainly part of the scam.

Be aware that UK reimbursement rules for scam payments don't cover international transfers, so money sent abroad is much harder to recover. That's why checking first matters so much.

Three real-world examples

Derek: the cold call

Derek, 66, in Pattaya, gets a call about "pre-IPO" shares in a tech company, with a professional website and a price "rising next week". Before paying, he sends the details to Lawrence. Lawrence points out the unsolicited call, the pressure, the payment to an account in a different company's name and the absence of any listing — all classic boiler-room signs. Derek walks away, and instead invests in a worldwide portfolio on a well-known platform in his own name.

Sue: the friend's tip

Sue, 59, in Hua Hin, hears from two friends that a trading app has paid them 3% a month for a year. She's tempted to invest £40,000. A free second opinion with Lawrence shows that the "returns" can't be withdrawn without paying a release fee, and that the app holds the money itself, with no custodian. Sue doesn't invest — and warns her friends.

Mike and Dao: checking an adviser

Mike and Dao, in Bangkok, are approached by an adviser offering a savings plan. They use the questions in this guide, get a clear written recommendation with all charges, confirm their money will go directly to a well-known provider in their names and ask Lawrence for a second view before signing. They invest with confidence, knowing exactly what they've bought.

The mistakes we see most often

1. Trusting a professional-looking website — anyone can build one.
2. Calling back on the number given rather than one found independently.
3. Taking early withdrawals as proof an investment is real.
4. Investing because friends have, without checking.
5. Paying fees to release "profits".
6. Keeping it secret from family or advisers, as asked.
7. Rushing to meet a deadline.
8. Paying a recovery firm after a loss.

Your before-you-invest checklist

• I asked for this — it wasn't an unsolicited offer.
• I understand it and could explain it to a friend.
• The returns are realistic and not guaranteed.
• My money goes to a well-known provider, in my name.
• An independent custodian holds the investments.
• I have every charge in writing, and know how to get out.
• I've taken at least 24 hours and talked it through.
• I've had a second opinion from someone I trust.

Keeping your accounts secure

Many investment frauds start with a hacked email or account. Protect yours:

• Use a password manager and a different strong password for every account.
• Turn on two-factor sign-in on every bank, investment and email account.
• Use a private, protected connection on hotel, café and condo Wi-Fi.
• Keep your phone and apps updated, and only install apps from official stores.

How we researched this guide

We used City of London Police figures on investment fraud in 2025 (reported by Financial Planning Today, April 2026), UK Finance's Annual Fraud Report 2026 (via Financier Worldwide, July 2026), and our earlier guides on payment scams in Thailand (Asia News Network, Khaosod English, Report Fraud), platform custody and offshore structures. The examples are composites to illustrate common patterns. Checked 13 October 2026. This guide is general information, not personal financial advice.