August 11, 2020 | AtoZ Markets – The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (‘CySEC’) announced today that it wishes to inform investors that the following websites do not belong to an entity which has been granted an authorization for the provision of investment services and/or the performance of investment activities, as provided for in Article 5 of Law 87 (I)/2017.
CySEC blacklists seven FX and cryptocurrency websites
The Cypriot regulator has blacklisted the following domains:
- fxgrowcapital.com
- meritkapital.net
- fxg.market
- 247firstinvest.com
- keyoncapital.com
- procloudoptions.online
- cryptotradecentr.com
It stresses that these firms do not have the authorization to do brokerage business in Cyprus, nor do they have any affiliation with a regulated entity. According to the watchdog, consumers who lose their money on unauthorized platforms do not have the protection of the Investor Compensation Fund (ICF), The ICF serves to protect the claims of covered clients and provide them with compensation in case a member couldn’t meet its financial obligations. Earlier in 2019, the CySEC changed maximum compensation for valid claims to be either 90 percent of the cumulative covered claims or €20.000, whichever is lower.
So you need to be wary
Unauthorized FX brokers are becoming common in the industry, as fraudsters have grown increasingly resourceful in recent years. A commonly adopted tactic is for scammers to advertise an illegal operation as a reputable brand or entity. They do this in order to dupe unsuspecting investors into parting with their personal details or cash.
As a result, CySEC urges investors to consult its website (www.cysec.gov.cy), before conducting business with investment firms, in order to ascertain the entities which are licensed to provide investment services and/or investment activities. Although CySEC works alongside other national financial industry supervisors, it is hard work to flag as many illicit websites as possible.
Think we missed something? Let us know in the comment section below.