Victims of several landbanking schemes are set to receive a fraction of their money back after the FCA recovered some of the lost funds.

The FCA has obtained the High Court’s approval to return £2.5m to qualifying investors who ploughed money into the unauthorised collective investment schemes between 2005 and 2010.

In total around 800 investors paid out £32.8m to the companies who were selling plots of land unlawfully.

Some of the schemes used the name “Countrywide” but were in no way connected to the well-known national estate agency and surveyor.

The companies involved were Countrywide Land Holdings Limited and James Kenneth Maynard (trading as Regional Land and Countrywide Land Holdings) and Stephen Ronald Watkins (trading as Consolidated Land UK).

The FCA has recovered £2.5m from the liquidation of a related Panamanian company, Paradigm Consultancy SA, which will now be distributed to 573 qualifying investors.

FCA executive director of enforcement and market oversight Mark Steward says: “Investment promising high returns means there is a high risk investors will lose their money. 

“Sadly, this is what happened here.”

He adds: “We have worked very hard to identify people eligible to receive compensation from these schemes and are pleased to have been able to recover and return some of their money.

“We would like to thank the Metropolitan Police and Trading Standards for their assistance with this matter.”