The Financial Services Authority has secured winding-up orders against two  UK firms operating a biofuels collective investment scheme.

Bio Partners and Zambia Alpha One took almost £1 million from UK investors to invest in the farming of biofuel crops in Africa.

However, neither firm was authorised by the FSA to do so and did not convince the regulator that the scheme was being managed competently.

Margaret Cole, managing director of enforcement and financial crime at the FSA, said without authorisation neither firm had any business running the scheme.

She said, 'If things go wrong for people who’ve invested with an unauthorised business they rarely get any money back because the firms are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.'

Cole added, 'Anybody considering whether to invest in agricultural or crop schemes like this should only deal with FSA authorised firms.'

Investors who put money into the scheme are being urged to contact the Public Interest Unit of the Official Receiver's Office at piu.or@insolvency.gsi.gov.uk for further information.

Earlier this week, the FSA said it would write to more than 49,000 consumers after discovering a 'master list' including names, addresses and telephone numbers used by boiler room fraudsters.

The list was recovered by working with Homeland Security Investigations and the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation in the US.
 
It recommended that anybody who thinks they may have been targeted by  boiler room scam should call the customer contact centre on 0845 606 1234.