Traders should remain vigilant of online schemes
Beginner trader ‘Chris’ started trading in December 2023. He had met a ‘finfluencer’ (financial influencer) who ostentatiously showcased his lavish lifestyle online—flaunting fancy sports cars, branded watches, and five-star hotel vacations, all attributed to his high-quality trading signals and analysis. With high hopes, ‘Chris’ started following the influencer’s signals, thinking he could earn some extra money for his family. Three months later, he lost 65,100 ZAR (3,700 USD).
After filing a complaint through TRU’s Dispute Resolution Service, TRU was able to identify that the so-called finfluencer was not an authorized financial service provider and had no technical basis on the trading signals they were providing.
Unfortunately, this scheme is prevalent in online trading and could victimize beginner or experienced traders. South Africa’s Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) has recognized the severity of these schemes and has recently imposed stricter penalties on unauthorized financial advice online.
On October 16, 2024, the FSCA penalized and debarred Kabelo Mogale for selling trading signals without a proper license.
This comes after the FSCA conducted an investigation of Mogale’s company, Forex Private Jet Injectors, an unauthorized financial service provider that Mogale used as a name for his scheme. They found that Mogale gave financial advice to clients when he published forex signals through Telegram and made false recommendations to clients.
Read the FSCA’s full press release here:
Mogale has been penalized for violating Section 7(1) of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act No. 37 of 2002 (FAIS Act). In addition, he also contravened Section 139(2) of the Financial Sector Regulation Act No. 9 of 2017 by failing to cooperate with the FSCA during the investigation.
The FSCA imposed a fine of R1,015,315.87 ($54,827) and banned him for a period of 10 years.
Such a trading scheme typically targets traders, novice or experienced, and exploits their ignorance, hopes, and emotions. FSCA’s fine is the first of its nature imposed by the authority and is a significant improvement in regulating online trading in South Africa.
The TRU Movement: Vigilant, informed traders
TradersUnited (TRU) reminds online traders to keep vigilant when receiving financial advice or signals online. Always check if the financial service provider is authorized and conduct thorough research on the provider’s credibility.
Financial crimes may not be violent, but they certainly are not victimless. According to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the global economy loses about $78 billion each year because of fake and misleading messages.
Additionally, the SEC recorded a staggering $2.7 billion worth of scams online in 2023, with 53% of the sum lost in fake investment opportunities. According to the commission, online trading scams have become so complex and elaborate that it could take years to complete. Fraudsters pose as beautiful young women, bank executives, or anonymous billionaires sharing their secrets to success to extract as much money as possible from their victims – just like what happened to Chris.
It is because of this dilemma that TradersUnited has initiated the TRU movement – a collaborative effort to create a better trading world. The organization has created comprehensive solutions for traders to empower them against fraud and deceit.
TRU believes that true empowerment can be achieved through financial literacy, a verified community of traders, and a pro-trader dispute resolution system. Likewise, traders must familiarize themselves with existing regulations that help protect them from malicious activity.
Access the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act of 2002 (FAIS Act) here:
Below are some well-known financial regulators that traders can look into.
International financial regulators
Traders must also be familiar with international regulatory agencies, especially when dealing with foreign brokers of service providers.
Each country follows their own regulations and traders must also become familiar with their policies to stay protected. These regulators maintain integrity and fairness in the financial market and protect traders from any fraudulent activities.
Some well-known regulatory bodies are the following:
- Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA)
- Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
- Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC)
- Financial Services Authority (FSA)
- Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA).
You can read more about foreign regulator bodies here.
Resolve, recover, and realize with TRU’s Dispute Resolution System (DRS)
The DRS is an online trader protection initiative that gives traders a safety net against unfair and unethical activities from brokers and service providers.
File a dispute here.
