Belgium’s FSMA identifies new fraudulent online trading platforms
During the last weeks, the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) continued to receive complaints from consumers concerning new fraudulent online trading platforms that are operating in the Belgian market.
These trading platforms try to arouse consumers’ curiosity by placing scam ads on social media. In these fake ads, a (well-known) person often explains how to get rich quick. Trading platforms also use mobile applications to lure victims. These fake ads or mobile applications often form part of the offer of a virtual currency or training course. After clicking on the ad or downloading the mobile app and having given their contact details, the victims are usually swiftly called by fraudsters presenting a concrete investment proposal (in shares, alternative investment products, virtual currencies, etc.).
Other trading platforms contact consumers through dating apps and fake social media accounts.
These platforms act very aggressively. Scammers even try to persuade the victims to allow them to take control of their computer remotely in order to make certain money transfers. The fraudsters also try to convince the victims to invest increasingly higher amounts of money. They also make promises of repayment in exchange for one last money transfer. This is a technique to collect even more money from their victims.
Victims who agree to do so complain in particular about finding themselves unable to recover their money, or simply not hearing any more from the platform with which they have invested their money.
These are most likely cases of investment fraud.
The list of new trading platforms that have appeared on the Internet in recent weeks includes:
- Bitalpha AI (bitalpha-ai.io, bitalpha-ai.nl and bitalpha-ai.org)
- Bitopps (www.bitopps.com)
- Bullden (bullden.io)
- Capital Forex Live Limited (capitalforex.live)
- Capital One Markets (capitalonemarkets.com)
- Capitals Trade Fx (capitalstradefx.com)
- Cedar Signals (cedarsignals.live)
- Crypto1Capital (platform.crypto1capital-trade.com and crypto1capital.com)
- Cryptoneyx (www.cryptoneyx.com and www.cryptoneyx.io)
- Definite Area (definitearea.com)
- DGTL-Trade (dgtl-trade.com)
- Ejinvesting (ejinvesting.com)
- Finutrade (finutrade.com)
- FX EliteTrader (fx-elitetrader.io)
- GFE Markets (gfemarkets.com)
- Gigachains (www.gigachains.com)
- Green Capitalz (greencapitalz.com)
- Greenlinepro (greenlinepro.com)
- Gstock (gstocklegal.com)
- Hubblebit (hubblebit.com and hubblebit.vip)
- Icorp Securities (icorpsecurities.com)
- Inetmarkets (inetmarkets.com)
- JH Group (hk-atf.com)
- Marketsbank (marketsbank.com)
- MiningFXbitcoin (miningfxbitcoin.com)
- NABCrypto.io (nabcrypto.io)
- Onotex (onotextrade.com)
- Plus12 (plus12.io)
- Priority Markets (priority-markets.com)
- Profi Trade 24/7 (profitrade247.com)
- Quantrix-Capital (www.quantrixcapital.net and www.quantrix-capital.com)
- Quantum AI (quantum-ai-trading.com)
- Skynettrades (skynettrades.com)
- Smart Trade Group (smart-trade-group.com and smart-trade-group.net)
- Swisschains (www.swisschains.com)
- Tandem Markets (www.tandemmarkets.com)
- TradeBaionics (www.tradebaionics.com and www.tradebaionics.net)
- Trade-Coin (trade-coin.com)
- Uniglobal Invest (uniglobal-invest.com)
- UXTrades (uxtrades.com)