I opened a platinum account which cost $9,000 joining fee and with a $10,000 trading account.
Returns for the first month (Dec 2007) were $2,700 profit which was paid into my account. They then rang myself and another friend that has an account with them and told us that they were stopping opening any new accounts as they had too many clients and wanted to concentrate on servicing their existing clients. I then stupidly took out a loan for 2 more platinum accounts before they ‘stopped’ taking any new accounts. So I have $57,000 tied up with the company. Their customer service person ‘Nancy’ sent out quarterly account statements (Jan-March 2008) saying that we had earnt $2,700 per account. This was 4 months ago and I have not received the money.

And so begins my worst nightmare…
Suddenly their phone number (1300 762 286) was only ever answered by a recorded message and none of the messages I left were ever returned. Their phone is now answered by a message service and as expected my calls are never returned. Brian Kelly hasn’t answered his phone since I handed over my money and he doesn’t return any calls. I have since been able to get the numbers of 2 people in sales and after explaining my situation and pleading my case to them they promised to look into it with Brian and now they don’t answer or return my calls.

I have text messaged Brian Kelly about my situation. Letting him know that this has caused untold anguish with my family and I’m about to lose my house because I can’t afford the repayments on the extra loan I took out. He has text me back once saying that I will get the money (stringing me along) so he knows exactly what is going on.

I have posted my story on theripoffreport.com
http://ripoffreport.com/reports/0/347/RipOff0347024.htm
:

Stupidly or not, I posted my mobile number here and have since received calls from other victims of Standford and Associates / Brian Kelly from all over Australia.
The line is always the same. These people ring up and say ‘I think I’ve been burnt by Standford as well’ no one is quite sure whether they have lost their money because Standford and Brian Kelly just stop answering calls and totally cut you off. You live in hope that Nancy Edmunds (the customer service woman) will call you to tell you that they are transferring the latest returns into your bank account. It won’t happen, you have handed over your money and you are of no use to them now.
-CD