THE Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has flagged unauthorized groups masking as foreign exchange (forex) traders, trying to solicit investments from the public without a license.
The corporate regulator issued separate warnings on its website identifying 1 Heal 1 World Trading and Juan Savings as groups that offer illegitimate investment opportunities.
These entities were investigated by the SEC and found luring the public to invest in exchange of profits. This activity is equivalent to selling investment contracts, an activity that requires a secondary license from the SEC.
Specifically, the SEC said 1 Heal 1 World Trading pretends to be engaged in foreign exchange trading. It solicits P1,000-P50,000 as capital in exchange of a 170% return on investment in 25 days. The payout is given in four cycles with a 5% deduction, it said.
Similarly, Juan Savings claims to be dealing with foreign exchange trading and invites investors through a Facebook page. It promises a 7% interest rate, locks in an investment for 10 months and pays investors their profits every month.
However, the SEC said both 1 Heal 1 World Trading and Juan Savings are not registered businesses. They are also not authorized to solicit investments from the public as they have not secured a license to sell securities.
The SEC also noted it currently does not allow the registration of foreign exchange to be used as securities, as its governing rules are still suspended.
The public is advised not to invest or to stop investing in 1 Heal 1 World Trading and Juan Savings.
Salesmen, brokers, dealers and agents of the two groups may be penalized for violation of the Securities Regulation Code in the form of a maximum P5-million fine, maximum 21 years of imprisonment, or both.
The names of individuals involved in the schemes will also be reported to the Bureau of Internal Revenue for other appropriate penalties. — Denise A. Valdez
