We would like to make you aware of an ongoing scam involving individuals who falsely claim to be from Aviva. These individual(s) offer to “invest” large sums of money into businesses. They appear to be pursuing small, start-up companies, but any business could be targeted.
What to look for
The scammers advise business owners that they are a pool of “angel investors” of high-net-worth individuals, who are seeking business and capital opportunities around the world. They state they are interested in a wide array of industries, including real estate, hospitality, tourism, construction, renewable and green energy, healthcare, mining, import and export, general trading, oil and gas, as well as others.
The scammers appear to ask the company to provide them with their business plans for investor review. Upon “review,” the scammers respond to the business with an “investment offer.”
Examples of “offers” we have seen include:
- “Soft loans” at X% interest per annum for X number of years.
- Joint venture (JV) opportunities, where the “investors” take X% of yearly net profits, leaving the business owner with X%.
In addition, we have also seen incidences where the scammers offer to meet business owners in person for a “face-to-face” meeting. Scammers have also advised that they like to remain “private” and don’t want publicity; therefore, wish to keep their conversations “100% confidential.”
To perpetuate their scheme, scammers have created false Aviva sites. These sites appear as legitimate Aviva sites; however, they have no link to us whatsoever.
Example(s) include:
- partner-aviva.com
Learn more about fake investment offers.
Contacted by a scammer or fallen victim to an investing scam? Report it to us right away!
If you have provided personal information, we also recommend reporting the incident to your local police authorities and financial institutions.
Learn more about fraud and how you can protect yourself on our Fraud Hub!