THE Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is warning the public against a new investing scheme that operates under the guise of free training seminars on financial derivatives to lure people into buying securities.
In an advisory posted on its website last week, the country’s corporate regulator said it is now studying the spread of such training seminars -often claiming to provide information on trading in foreign exchange, commodity futures contracts and contracts for difference — which end up as fronts for the illegal sale of unregistered securities by unlicensed brokers.
The SEC said these seminars are allegedly conducted by local and foreign experts, who assist participants in investing in securities through online investment platforms that are supposedly registered overseas.
“It must be clear that the SEC does not allow the registration of Foreign Exchange, Commodity Futures Contract, Contracts for Difference and other similar derivatives nor their brokers as the pertinent rules governing these securities remain suspended pursuant to Rule 11 of 2015 Implementing Rules and Regulations of the Securities Regulation Code,” it said.
“Aside from the illegality of the offering and the non-registration of brokers, these… derivatives are highly volatile and high-risk,” it added.
The SEC said some have reported being tricked in such schemes, wherein they lost more money than initially invested.
“[T]he public is hereby advised to be cautious in dealing with the promoters and trainers in these free seminars and to stop investing in foreign-registered investment electronic platforms offering Commodity Futures Contract, Foreign Exchange, Contracts for Difference and similar derivatives,” it said.
In separate advisories, the SEC also warned the public against investing in the following groups: Give and Share E-Commerce Solutions, Inc./ GAS E-Commerce Solutions, Inc.; Financing International-Casino/ Casino VIP Financing by Cathlyne Papasin/ Casino VIP Financing/ Fortune Dragon Casino Financing; CoinDeOro Holdings, Inc./Coin De Oro; and Payasian Solutions Pte. Ltd./ Payasian Pte. Ltd. Corp.
The regulator said these groups are not authorized to solicit investments as they do not have the required registration and/or license from the SEC to be engaged in such business. — Denise A. Valdez
