ASA rules against whisky cask investment firm again
The UK’s advertising watchdog has concluded that Capgroup Int, formerly known as London Cask Company and Caskcap, has displayed ‘misleading’ review scores and failed to provide appropriate risk warnings on its website.
The London-based business, which has been known by three different names under the same Companies House registration number, now operates as a whiskey cask and gold coin investment company. Its website states that it focuses on “Irish whiskey casks and graded gold coins”.
The firm first came onto the Advertising Standards Authority’s (ASA) radar in 2023 under its original name, London Cask Company. The ASA banned the company’s 2022 newspaper ad in The Guardian for misleading consumers with unproven claims about financial returns. A complaint was also filed regarding similar claims made on the business’ website. All complaints were upheld.
Following the ruling, the ASA published an enforcement notice to clamp down on ‘misleading’ whisky cask investment ads, with the new advertising rules officially taking effect on 2 January 2024.
London Cask Co changed its name to Caskcap Ltd in 2024 and to Capgroup Int Ltd in May 2025.
Under its new name, the company has again faced concerns regarding ‘misleading’ and inadequate information and possible false advertising on its website, which were observed in April 2026.
Capgroup’s homepage claimed it had 27,023 ‘excellent’ TrustPilot reviews. It also included the statement: “Your gateway to alternative investments: we specialise in helping our clients diversify their portfolios and hedge against inflation with tangible, tax-free assets that offer both stability and potential long-term value.”
Additional text stated, “as seen on,” followed by the logos of Sky News, The Times, Daily Mail, GB News, Metro, and The Telegraph. The company further emphasised: “We specialise in tangible, tax-free investment opportunities designed to preserve and grow your capital with confidence.”
Under the subheading “why whiskey is the perfect investment,” it mentioned, “a slow-maturing, high-performing asset class with global scarcity and strong returns”; “consistent growth: rare whiskey has delivered average returns of 8 to 15 per cent [sic] per year, outperforming many traditional investments”; and “supply cannot catch up, pushing prices higher”.
The ASA investigated five issues, one of which was resolved informally, with Capgroup agreeing to implement changes.
The four other issues raised regarded the claims of ‘excellent’ TrustPilot reviews and ‘as seen on’ advertising featuring the logos of publications and TV channels, as well as ensuring that prospective clients were properly informed that the company operates in an unregulated investment category that could face fluctuations, including negative ones. All challenges were upheld.
The ASA investigated whether the advertising “was misleading because it did not make clear material information about the risks of the investments” and “breached the CAP Code [UK Code of Non-Broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing] because it did not make clear that the value of investments was variable or that past performance did not necessarily give a guide for the future”.
TrustPilot reviews
The Capgroup website had stated: “Excellent…27,023 reviews on TrustPilot” alongside an image showing four-and-a-half stars.
The ASA found Capgroup had no such rating, and it has now removed the claim from its website. The ASA concluded that the Trustpilot score was not accurate.
The TrustPilot website currently shows no reviews under the Capgroup name and only 85 reviews under the company’s old name, Caskcap, with a three-and-a-half-star rating.
‘As seen on’ claim
Capgroup stated that the use of the phrase ‘as seen on’, accompanied by the logos of various national news publications, was intended to reflect paid advertising placements and media coverage in various publications, not to suggest editorial endorsements.
Capgroup noted that the claim ‘as seen on’ is currently under review and that it would remove it from advertising if necessary.
Unregulated investments
Capgroup acknowledged that information about whiskey casks and physical gold investment products not being regulated was material information. The ASA noted that the CAP Code required that material information should not be omitted and should be presented clearly.
Capgroup said it had since added prominent wording to its website confirming that its products were not regulated investments.
Percentage returns
Regarding the claim of “8 to 15 per cent per year”, Capgroup analysed its records and confirmed it had complete pricing data for 83 casks purchased between 2021 and 2023.
Internal analysis revealed the range of annualised returns varied from 4.4% to 28.5%.
It was noted that 54 out of the 83 casks (65%) delivered returns within the advertised 8-15% range, but some delivered returns below 8%.
Additionally, the claimed selling prices were partly based on valuations rather than actual sales, meaning the examples provided were neither substantiated nor representative.
Consequently, the ASA concluded the advertisement violated the CAP Code.
Capgroup decided to remove the claim from its website, while maintaining that the 8%-15% figure was based on the actual performance of the majority of its client portfolio.
Cask investment concerns
In 2023, the City of London Police urged people to be wary of whisky cask investment advertisements, as consumers lost £3 million (US$3.8m) to alcohol investment scams that year alone.
In 2024, Felipe Schrieberg and Mark Littler created a website in response to growing industry concerns about the spread of misinformation, or lack of information, about returns on investment from buying and reselling casks of Scotch whisky.
Last year, BBC investigations shone a light on fraudulent practices in the whisky cask investment sector, prompting fresh calls for stricter regulation, parliamentary intervention, and greater transparency in the industry. A producer of the BBC Hunting the Whisky Bandits documentary and podcast described cask investment fraud as “serious organised crime”.
In September 2025, independent old and rare spirits consultancy Wisgy released its ‘Secret Whisky Cask Broker’ interview focused on the complexities of whisky cask brokerage and common misunderstandings.
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