FSMA Outs Suspected Scams Disguised as Trading Platforms

The financial regulatory agency in Belgium, the Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA), has today published a statement, warning residents of the country to be wary of scams hiding as Online Trading Online Trading Online trading represents the trading of fiat currencies, digital currencies, commodities, stocks and indices, where traders and investors intend to make a profit, via the purchase or sale of the aforementioned products. This is done through an electronic network, made accessible by brokers in the form of an online trading platform or hub.Online trading continues to see a rapid growth year on year, due to a number of reasons. Firstly, the number of brokers offering their services, with more money being spent on advertisements and sponsorships to attract potential traders. Secondly, more traders are aware of the ease in applying for online accounts; the low barrier to entry now means a trader only needs to deposit virtually as little as one wants in order to places trades. Thirdly, the improvement of financial technology, better performing hardware and software, leading to quick and consistent execution, which in turn is helped by higher liquidity, and reduced trading costs such spreads and commissions, have fueled the retail trading industry immensely. How to Trade Online?Before the emergence of the Internet, traders would have to place trades over the phone, which could be rather cumbersome, especially if one wanted to place multiple trades in a short space of time. Indeed, online trading has opened a new field of trading in the form of foreign exchange scalping, whether manually, or by way of automated trading robots. An example of online trading is the trading the foreign exchange market with a forex broker, using a platform which the broker will provide. The trader installs the platform on their computer, and they are given the information and tools needed to start trading. The most common online retail platform for forex trading is known as MetaTrader 4 (MT4). Online trading represents the trading of fiat currencies, digital currencies, commodities, stocks and indices, where traders and investors intend to make a profit, via the purchase or sale of the aforementioned products. This is done through an electronic network, made accessible by brokers in the form of an online trading platform or hub.Online trading continues to see a rapid growth year on year, due to a number of reasons. Firstly, the number of brokers offering their services, with more money being spent on advertisements and sponsorships to attract potential traders. Secondly, more traders are aware of the ease in applying for online accounts; the low barrier to entry now means a trader only needs to deposit virtually as little as one wants in order to places trades. Thirdly, the improvement of financial technology, better performing hardware and software, leading to quick and consistent execution, which in turn is helped by higher liquidity, and reduced trading costs such spreads and commissions, have fueled the retail trading industry immensely. How to Trade Online?Before the emergence of the Internet, traders would have to place trades over the phone, which could be rather cumbersome, especially if one wanted to place multiple trades in a short space of time. Indeed, online trading has opened a new field of trading in the form of foreign exchange scalping, whether manually, or by way of automated trading robots. An example of online trading is the trading the foreign exchange market with a forex broker, using a platform which the broker will provide. The trader installs the platform on their computer, and they are given the information and tools needed to start trading. The most common online retail platform for forex trading is known as MetaTrader 4 (MT4). Read this Term platforms.

Specifically, the regulator has flagged a number of new entities which are unlawfully offering binary options, foreign exchange (Forex Forex Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. Foreign exchange or forex is the act of converting one nation’s currency into another nation’s currency (that possesses a different currency); for example, the converting of British Pounds into US Dollars, and vice versa. The exchange of currencies can be done over a physical counter, such as at a Bureau de Change, or over the internet via broker platforms, where currency speculation takes place, known as forex trading.The foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is the world’s largest trading market by volume. According to the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) latest survey, the Forex market now turns over in excess of $5 trillion every day, with the most exchanges occurring between the US Dollar and the Euro (EUR/USD), followed by the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY), then the US Dollar and Pound Sterling (GBP/USD). Ultimately, it is the very exchanging between currencies which causes a country’s currency to fluctuate in value in relation to another currency – this is known as the exchange rate. With regards to freely floating currencies, this is determined by supply and demand, such as imports and exports, and currency traders, such as banks and hedge funds. Emphasis on Retail Trading for ForexTrading the forex market for the purpose of financial gain was once the exclusive realm of financial institutions.But thanks to the invention of the internet and advances in financial technology from the 1990’s, almost anyone can now start trading this huge market. All one needs is a computer, an internet connection, and an account with a forex broker. Of course, before one starts to trade currencies, a certain level of knowledge and practice is essential. Once can gain some practice using demonstration accounts, i.e. place trades using demo money, before moving on to some real trading after attaining confidence. The main two fields of trading are known as technical analysis and fundamental analysis. Technical analysis refers to using mathematical tools and certain patterns to help decide whether to buy or sell a currency pair, and fundamental analysis refers to gauging the national and international events which may potentially affect a country’s currency value. Read this Term) products and/or contracts for difference (CFD) on the Belgian market. According to the warning, residents who invested in the following platforms never regained their money, so they are most likely a scam.

• 365 Markets (Trustnet Ltd) (www.365markets.com)
• CFDS100.com (Trsystem Limited) (www.cfds100.com)
• FXG Trade (Capital FXG Ltd / Nordic Pearl Ltd) (www.fxgtrade.com)
• HybridReserve (Singlebell LTD / SingleBell OU) (www.hybridreserve.com)
• PBN Capital (Capital Tech Ltd / Pbox Ltd) (www.pbncapital.com)

According to the FSMA: “Any company wishing to offer investment products must hold an authorization. Furthermore, since 18 August 2016, no investment firm (authorized or not) is permitted to distribute actively, within the territory of Belgium, binary options, certain forex products or CFDs. The companies that are the subject of this warning do not comply with the aforementioned rules.”

FSMA Urgers Consumers to do their Due Diligence

The Belgian regulator reminds investors that investment scams can be commonly found in the binary options, forex, and CFD sector. Cryptocurrency scams are also becoming increasingly popular, buoyed by a lack of harmonized regulation in the space.

One of the easiest ways to tell if a firm is legitimate or not is to check with your local regulator to see if they are registered and authorized to provide their services in the country you reside in. For the FSMA, you can search here.

However, searching alone is not enough, as there are also many clone firms which copy the name, address, registration details and more in order to appear legitimate. To this end, the Belgian watchdog also advises consumers to check for warnings against the company, check that it’s details are correct and be wary of unsolicited contact.