23 September, AtoZForex.com, Lagos – ASIC warns against ABS group clones. The notice came after the Australian securities and exchange commission (ASIC) found certain websites operating without due licensing, whilst were claiming to be authorized by the Australian financial regulator.
According to the announcement of ASIC, the websites www.fxabs.com.au and www.fxabs.com are falsely claiming that their services are regulated by the regulator. In addition, these websites seek to ride on the goodwill of a more established firm, namely the Australian company Australia ABS Group Pty Ltd (Australia ABS Group). Thereby operating as ABS group clones, hence ASIC warns against ABS group clones.
The unregulated websites have deceptively claimed affiliation with the Australia ABS Group. The websites offer CFD and margin FX services. While Australia ABS Group does have an Australian financial services (AFS) license, it is not currently authorized to provide these types of services under that license. After consultation with the management of Australia ABS Group, they confirmed that these the websites are not associated with the company in any way.
ASIC Commissioner's comments
Commenting on the clone case of the company Australia ABS Group Pty Ltd , ASIC Commissioner Cathie Armour has said the following:
‘This case again highlights the need for investors to be vigilant and do their research before signing up to trade financial products via a website. A simple check of ASIC’s registers would have shown that the entity being promoted on the websites is not adequately licensed to provide the products on offer.’
Notwithstanding, the Australian financial regulator has reiterated again that individuals are advised to check if a company or individual is licensed by searching ASIC’s professional registers. It's a must to always execute this research, the same advise is applicable for financial firms as well.
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