85-year-old man pleads guilty to misleading investors

Former NASA physicist John Burford has pleaded guilty in a £1m investment fraud case, following a prosecution brought by the FCA.

He will be sentenced at a later date at Southwark Crown Court.

Mansfield-based Mr Burford, 85, was sole director of Financial Trading Strategies Limited.

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He promoted a paid-for subscription service through its website to offer daily trade alerts with investment advice, and the opportunity to invest in three self-named ‘tramline’ funds.

Mr Burford took money from over 100 investors and advised on and managed investments without FCA authorisation Between 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2023.

Investors were encouraged to spend £995 a year to join Mr Burford’s VIP Traders Club, or £595 to receive alerts when he spotted a stock market opportunity.

He made more than £1m in the process, which he used to buy a property and fund his living expenses, the FCA said.

Mr Burford repeatedly lied to investors about how much the funds were worth and hid the full extent of the losses he had incurred while trading.

Following the guilty plea the FCA said it will also seek confiscation orders to deprive Mr Burford of his ill-gotten gains and return monies to investors.

Steve Smart, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said: “Mr Burford fleeced unwitting investors in order to enrich his life- not theirs.

“Identifying and disrupting criminals who abuse people’s trust for their own gain, is a top priority for the FCA.”

Much earlier in his career as a physicist Mr Burford was involved in a Washington-based project to land men on Mars.