Australian Watchdog Stops Unlicensed Firm's Cold Calling

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC ASIC The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is the prime regulator in Australia for corporate, markets, financial services, and consumer credit. It is empowered under the financial service laws to facilitate, regulate, and enforce Australian financial laws. The Australian Commission was set up and is administered under the Australian Securities and Investment Commission Act of 2001. ASIC was initially the Australian Securities Commission based on the 1989 ASC Act. Initially, the The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is the prime regulator in Australia for corporate, markets, financial services, and consumer credit. It is empowered under the financial service laws to facilitate, regulate, and enforce Australian financial laws. The Australian Commission was set up and is administered under the Australian Securities and Investment Commission Act of 2001. ASIC was initially the Australian Securities Commission based on the 1989 ASC Act. Initially, the Read this Term) announced today that a cold-calling operation promoting FX and binary option products to investors worldwide has agreed to stop contacting Australian investors following ASIC concerns.

The firm in question, FXTS Guru, claimed on its website (www.fxts.guru) that it makes up to 3,000 calls a day to investors across 40 countries, including Australia, promoting its products and then supplying investors’ contact details to its clients - various FX and binary option issuers.

ASIC raised its concerns with FXTS Guru because FXTS Guru has never been licensed to provide financial services in Australia. In addition, none of FXTS Guru’s listed clients were licensed to provide financial services in Australia.

Following these concerns ASIC says that FXTS Guru has agreed to cease contacting Australian resident investors and has also agreed to change the information on its website to remove references to Australia. In fact, the website of FXTS Guru no longer appears to function and may have been taken offline – this does not mean that the firm may not go back to business as usual under a different name in the future.

ASIC Commissioner Cathie Armour said, “Investors need to be extremely wary of any unsolicited calls encouraging them to deal in financial products, especially products such as margin FX and binary options which are complex and risky. Always do your own research on a company or individual before you deal with them. You should also seek independent professional or legal advice to ensure you fully understand the products and services being offered and the various risks associated with them.”

The financial watchdog says that the outcome is part of ASIC’s ongoing work in the retail OTC derivative space. In April, the watchdog was in contact with Advanced Markets concerning changes to its website.