Barclay Spencer International

[jimbbc]

Has anyone done business with these guys? I've talked to them but they seem a little too polished for Thailand and they would not provide references.

Thanks, Jimbbc

[Maverick]

no references = no business. Not all their clients need to remain anonymous surely?

[dr_Pat_Pong]

no references = no business. Not all their clients need to remain anonymous surely?

I second that motion.

[PvtDick]

Be very, very wary of these guys. They are the prime voice spammers (unsolicited calls) in town and do not have a good reputation.

[GuestHouse]

Nobody seems to want to defend these people.

Odd that because they do have a regular slot in the Pattaya Mail and they used to be (not sure if they still are) sponsers of the PattayaExpatsClub.

I myslelf have a gut feeling about them which is purely judgmental but it goes like this.

Barclay Spencer. Its the creamiest business name I ever heard of, it just rings of "second hand car salesman sets up finacial services business".

I'm giving them a miss because my instincts say ' Why do they need such a name?'

Yuk!

[taxexile]

dont go there.

[Up2U]

My response would open this forum to libel suits, so I will not post it.

[PvtDick]

Convinced yet, jimbbc?

[george]

Why we don't invite them to this thread?

Anyone have their email address?

[Digger]

Why we don't invite them to this thread?

Anyone have their email address?

The guy with the really cheesy sounding name along the lines of "Tony Sleezington-Smyth" writes a weekly column in the Bangkok Post. I forget which day of the week, but it does have his e-mail address at the end.

Back to the original question - I have always had a policy of asking when these guys call me up to see their work permit - no work permit, no discussion. Surprise surprise, nobody has ever made it to the appointment stage. How anybody trusts these sharks with their money and expects good advice when they themsleves dont even have a work permit is beyond me

George perhaps you might like to Invite Tony SS to speak up for themselves AND shwo you his work permit at the same time......

[easymoney]

They tried to get in my pocket couple years back. I was on way to States for 3 months and told them would think about it and upon return give them a reply.

When I arrived back visited the Office on Soi 33 and lo and behold they were parting it down from me and bragging on their success of taking people that week.Reminded me of "Tin Man".

[Maverick]

They write regularily in various papers inluding Hua Hin today and I have read some good articles by Tony J Burke (real name?). They say they are 'international' but only list Vietnam and China as other offices so Asia would be a better description. Not sure what you are looking for advice on but if its life, car, household or pension advice I know an honest as the days long Scot who runs a business in BKK for last 12 years who i am sure has loads of referees - pm me if you interested. Their email is [email protected]

[astral]

They have an office in Pattaya as well.

I spoke to one of their people and he did seem to have good advice, but when I said I would be checking out other options, he became very defensive, just like a double glazing salesman.

If you do need investment advice, be sure to check out the market.

Take advice from a number of sources before committing your money!!

[scouse]

Try boiler room! These people have a long reputation, Andrew Leppard used to write the article ie MD but his <deleted> went and he used MR Tony, They are all from dodgy backgrounnds, check them out, I DID and check Mr Justin out called me tooooooo many times!!!!!! Funny but true!!

[davethailand]

i would'nt use them,

shoot me down but i will rarely use companies set up by farangs for legal/money matters, only if personally recommended by friends. (good friends) especially in pattaya.

[monty]

Hard to say what they are worth!

They seem to borrow on another well known name which seems fishy...

http://www.barclayscapital.com/

They do however have a slick website, and I cannot immagine they can get away with working without a workpermit etc.. My guess is they're a little to visible for that shit.

If their advice is worth anything nobody knows, but then again you never know with any investment advice!

I followed advice of the biggest and most respectfull investment firm in the US about 8 years ago and have been f****d in a big way... And no, I didn't request high gain, high risk investments (as happens a lot!) but stable, riskfree, low gain investment...

[Crash999]

i would'nt use them,

shoot me down but i will rarely use companies set up by farangs for legal/money matters, only if personally recommended by friends. (good friends) especially in pattaya.

A number of years ago I met a fellow alum who was traveling through SE Asia after a messy divorce looking for work. He couldn't find anything here so moved on.

A year went by and he contacted me again- he had been working for an 'offshore investment' firm in the Caribbean, but had problems being paid commission so he and a few others left. He then set up his own office with some former co-workers and began recruiting more and more folks.

He returned to Thailand and asked me about opening up a legit business here- he figured most of the offshore investment firms wouldn't be registered here so he could set himself apart by forming a company, giving an impression of stability, etc.

He used one of the larger law firms in Thailand to set up a company, and wound up opening offices here in Bangkok and down in Phuket- three years on and he's still going.

Along the way I learned that the MO for the offshore investment guys is quite simple at a basic level. They sell offshore mutual funds on behalf of outfits like Royal Skandia that are front-loaded, that is if one pulls out of the mutual fund before a set time frame (usually 2-3 years) one will get less than the money put in.

The broker is paid a commission based on the size and term of the investment, usually set up as a monthly payment. If the investor bails within the first couple of years then the commission doesn't get paid, hence it's in the broker's best interest to keep in frequent contact for the first couple of years.

Overall, can be relatively harmless as these guys can represent large reliable institutions. There's virtually no regulation in Thailand, though- so it's difficult to tell if you're being scammed, especially with all of the boiler room folks running around who can spit out a few financial terms to impress the punters.

The bottom line is the value these guys are adding- if they're simply trying to hawk their wares to get commission then there's no reason why one should invest in their front-loaded funds.

Cheers!

[londonguy]

Does anyone know if this is the same company that was based in Spain a few years ago? Same name and they fleeced a lot of ex-pats and disappered....

I have just checked their web site and its now off line!

[PvtDick]

Not exactly in a rush to defend their "reputation", are they?

[Emuu]

It amazes me how much mis-information and purile rubbish can be put on a website like this!

Given the provision of website and an email address, why didn't anyone ask the people concerned?

Just so you know, Barclay Spencer has never had an office on Soi 33 so someone is confusing it with another organisation.

Slinging mud based on an individual's family name is pathetic and not worth dignifying with an answer. (Bye the way, Tony St.John -Bourke has a work permit!)

Regarding other work permits, all Barclay Spencer employees permanently based in Thailand are either Thai nationals or have work permits. Some cnsultants however travel around the world providing expats with informatin about and connections to off-shore companies, and they have Non-immigration B (Business) visas issued by the government to allow them to operate in that capacity.

As far as a company name is concerned, when any name is chosen it is done so to represent those characteristics one desires to have associated with the individual or company concerned. The fact that this company was set up with association with the London based Offshore Financial Trade Association to deliver services in the manner that is expected in Europe, the UK and USA it was felt that the name should reflect that.

That it should be criticised for being polished in its presentation is mind boggling. Furtunately, there are many unpolished and inept alternatives available for those who object to having the job done correctly the first time.

In conclusion; Every industry, and probably all companies, Barclay Spencer included have made mistakes and may have had a bad egg from time to time. Even retirees and tourists have been murderers, rogues and ratbags, but that doesn't mean they all are!

My name is Michael Berris, and I'm the local Barclay Spencer consultant in Pattaya. If you have any genuine concerns or issues, I will be happy to talk to you and try to sort out the problem. If all you want is to look at the options, I'll be happy to oblige on that.

If you want a reference, Call Royal Skandia on the Isle of Man and ask them about our company's integrity, or call OFTA (the Offshore Financial Trade Association) and ask if there has ever been a complaint about me or the company.

Look after yourselves and have a good life.

[GuestHouse]

I fully support Barclay Spenser being given the chance to put their case, but I'll say it again,

'm giving them a miss because my instincts

Not that I don't believe Emmu, just I've come to trust my instincts, I have also had many occassions when I have regretted not trusting them.

If I follow my instincts and make my investments on shore back home within the law and protected by the law I might not make that 'offshore killing', but nobody is going to make a killing out of me either..

[Emuu]

Fair comment Guesthouse. I'm actually largely in agreement with you.

We have a policy at Barclay Spencer to only help our clients place investments in known and respected institutions within Group 1 OECD countries.

Predominantly that means the British protectorates of The Isle of Man and the Channel Islands with their substantial regulatory requirements

Any investment placed in an unregulated environment is subject to rediculous risk and not worth the paper it is written on.

[Emuu]

This is an advance notice so that people don't jump to inappropriate conclusions!

Barclay Spencer International will become Barclay Carrigan International as at 1 June 2004. This comes about due to the merging of BSI with Carrigan International as of that date.

The resultant company will see more widespread presence including Malta, Moscow, Hong Kong, Nairobi and a few other spots I haven't had confirmation on yet, allowing us to meet more people face to face.

We were criticised on this forum for calling ourselves "International" when we were only physically in three countries, but in reality, I have clients in Finland, England, Australia and the USA as well as here. We connect them with Institutions of Swiss, Norwegian, English , Italian and other nationalities based in the world's leading tax havens. With emails, phones, faxes and couriers, it is not at all dificult to conduct international business from one location.

It's time to realise that good quality international business can be conducted from Thailand, and you are entitled to expect complete integrity and international business standards in your dealings.

Michael Berris

[thaigene2]

My personal view is never to use an agent for anything, because I am the only person with my best interests at heart..(okay with the exception of my mum).

In the UK the Financial Services Industry is a tragically hillarious government-protected shell game, where they even have the poker-faced gall to recommend you to an Independent Financial Adviser - as though using the word independent somehow makes them whiter than white. Until recently, you could not buy any sort of commission-free private pension plan..you HAD to use either one of the ccompany's front-end loaded guys or an IFA who would also rip you off.

My advice: Never deal with anyone who makes a commission whether front-end, back-end or back-hand..you don't need them.

[GuestHouse]

My advice: Never deal with anyone who makes a commission whether front-end, back-end or back-hand..you don't need them

I'm not sure I agree with this, not everyone has the time to research the options and the 'traps'.

I think the two best bits of advice you will ever hear is,

Don't put all your eggs in one basket

and

If a deal sounds to good to be true, it usealy is, too good to be true.

One thing EMU is not telling us is where his company is incorporated, it is one thing to claim that investments are made in British Protectorates, but the contract that you sign in Thailand will be under Thai law, unless I'm mmissing something.

That said, i am not against finacial advisors as a matter of black and while don't like 'em.

Two of the best deals anyone ever did for me where done by Financial advisors.

What I would encourage Emu to do is provide us with information on where Enu's contracts are being made( under which law) and perhaps give us some evidence of where he has really helped people, that should not be too difficult, you know the kind of thing.

We sold an insurance to Mr. A and he later had to have an operation that saved his life....

That kind of thing.

[Emuu]

In response to thaigene2:

Can I assume that you always purchase everything from the individual who created it? If you ever purchased something in a shop, you are using an agent.

If you forced yourself to travel to Switzerland to deal with Zurich, or have them fly a rep. to you, your services would cost you vastly more than they would through a normal agent. Agents in the finance industry are simply the shop keepers who put a range of products from all over the world on display for your selection. Isn't the shop keeper entitled to be paid for services?

In response to GeustHouse:

You make some very legitimate comments regarding diversity in planning.

As to the question of legal juristiction, only those contracts or parts of contracts that are written in Thai are as I understand it enforcable under Thai law.

The contracts we facilitate are directly between non-Thai citizens and the company of their choice, hence for safety, our insistence that they should be conducted in Group 1 OECD juristictions under the provisions of their local enforceable legal system.

For example, a financial bond contracted with Royal Skandia or a similar company on the Isle of Man;

It is governed by the laws of the Isle of Man and all policy terms and schedules will be in English. It is subject to the rules and regulations of the Financial Services and Markets act 2000. Because it is technically a life assurance product it has, and I quote,

"Of all the major offshore centres, ... Only the Isle of Man has a statutory compensation scheme for offshore ife assurance companies. The Island's system operates globally, covering investors no matter where they reside. This means that investors benefit from unrivalled protection. This compensation scheme is as a result of the Life Assurance (Compensation of Policyholders) Regulation 1991, which protects all investors whose policies are effected on or after 1 February 1991."

The key issue is to verify that your contract is always directly with a major International investment house, not with a local advisor, no matter where they are incorporated, and that the money goes straight from where it is now to that International Investment house.

Never give your money to the advisor. As a backup, contact the Investment hous direct to confirm that the bank account nnumbers you have been given belong to them, not to an intermediary of any sort.

Hope this helps, Michael Berris, Barclay Carrigan International. 018647632

[thaigene2]

In response to thaigene2:

Can I assume that you always purchase everything from the individual who created it? If you ever purchased something in a shop, you are using an agent.

Problem with that logic is that brokers, financial advisers, insurance salesman, estate agents, used car salesman..etc, etc, aren't creating anything.

As for the shopkeeper - he's storing the goods for me til I buy them from him. I'm paying him for storing it til I need it. Khao jai mai?

[Emuu]

Actually, thaigene2, a good advisor stores knowledge, research, expertise, forms, duplicating machines and provides couriering, postage, information transfer and support in making applications, processing the same and fighting for the client if there are glitches that occur .

I do however appreciate that many people in the past have been taken for a ride by financial advisors and don't blame you for being skeptical.

In this little town of Pattaya, one local advisor got one client a loss and two clients an average 1.8% p.a. return. On our recommendations, the two clients of ours that I have looked at, using our recommendations obtained an average 24.8% p.a. return. They were using the same international investment house on a US$ denominated investment product over the same 31 month period.

I think I'd be p***ed as well if I had been so poorly advised in the past.

[p_brownstone]

In this little town of Pattaya, one local advisor got one client a loss and two clients an average 1.8% p.a. return.  On our recommendations, the two clients of ours that I have looked at, using our recommendations obtained an average 24.8% p.a. return.  They were using the same international investment house on a US$ denominated investment product over the same 31 month period.

I think I'd be p***ed as well if I had been so poorly advised in the past. 

HUGE Red flags all over this one!!!

Never - EVER - trust an "Investment Advisor" who entices you, however obliquely, with claims of a 20% + P.A. return on your investment.

And waffle such as

"using the same international investment house on a US$ denominated investment product over the same 31 month period"

is just one step (a short one, but rather more verbose) from some used by the Pattaya Condo "Timeshare" con artists.

[PvtDick]

I personally would never trust any company that makes obnoxious, used car salesman-esque cold calls like Barclay Spencer does. I still get calls a couple times every month after pleading with them for years to take me off their list. They lie to receptionists and secretaries to get past them, and in at least one case use false names. One time, I called Barclay Spencer back to complain about the manners of one of their cold callers, and they told me they had no one by the name that the caller gave me.

If they are not a boiler room, they use the exact same phone tactics.