Barbados’ two largest credit unions have issued a stark warning to their more than 190 000 members: use your accounts for fraudulent activity and you could face frozen funds or legal action, as the institutions intensify efforts to combat a surge in financial scams.
The warnings have come from the Barbados Public Workers’ Co-operative Credit Union Limited (BPWCCUL) and the City of Bridgetown Co-operative Credit Union (COB), whose senior management officials continue to raise concerns about a proliferation of fraudulent schemes into which some Barbadians are falling.
Chief Executive Officer of the 71 000-member COB, Steve Belle, told Barbados TODAY: “You see it every day. People advertise . . . they call people to invest in all types of schemes. It is happening in Barbados, all over the world. It is just now a case of educating our members, as we should constantly do . . . let our members know that there are schemes out there . . . . These get-rich schemes don’t work — from pyramids to people telling you to do this and they are going to give you this . . . you are getting them all day long, coming left, right and centre.
“Barbadians must know nobody gives you money free. So, when somebody tells you ‘do this and you are going to get a hundred dollars for doing nothing’, something has got to be wrong. Nobody gives away money. . . . These get-rich schemes are a joke. If it looks too good to be true, it isn’t true. Just be mindful of that.”
In a digital circular to its customers on Wednesday, the 42-year-old COB cautioned that their membership could also be in jeopardy if their accounts are used for such things as fraudulent schemes, money laundering or suspicious transactions.
It said: “To safeguard the integrity of our financial community, we may be required to take certain protective action, if such activities are detected, including temporarily freezing your accounts, reviewing your membership status, limiting access to credit union services, and reporting concerns to the appropriate legal or regulatory authorities.”
The credit union reminded customers of the importance of using their accounts responsibly and in line with its policies.
CEO of COB, Steve Belle.
COB warned members that all fraudulent activities are “strictly prohibited, as they can put both you and the wider membership at risk”.
Group Chief Executive Officer of the 119 000-strong BPWCCUL, Glyne Harrison, also warned that his 55-year-old financial institution will take legal action against members who use their accounts for fraudulent purposes.
“As it relates to legal action, that will come into play if you are the perpetrator of a fraud, and using your account for fraudulent purposes. So, if you participate in something that is fraudulent, we will go deeper, whatever that may be,” Harrison told Barbados TODAY.
“That [freezing of accounts] is automatic. If you are taking part in something fraudulent, then we will definitely freeze your account, involve the relevant stakeholders, whether it is the police, the FIU [Financial Intelligence Unit], and do whatever we need to do in terms of ensuring that corrective action can be taken.”
The group CEO also stressed that the status of the membership of suspects would be reviewed “depending on the extremity of the case being looked at”.
“That is a position that can be taken by the organisation if it is determined that . . . the member really and truly has acted in such a way that it brings the organisation into disrepute, and we need to send a signal.”
Harrison also said the credit union has a security process in place designed to mitigate attempts to compromise members’ accounts.
“Our existing process stands, which will, from a security perspective, block accounts to make sure that the persons can’t use it,” he stated.
emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb
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