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Belgium’s Financial Services Authority (FSMA) has added new warnings to its list of firms thought to be involved with crypto-related fraud. The financial watchdog has now alerted the nation’s investing public to a total of 121 different scam cryptocurrency-focused investment prospects since it started listing them in early 2018.
The FMSA is one of the few global authorities to maintain such a list. Last year alone incidents of crypto-related fraud are thought to have accounted for well over 4.5 million euros in lost funds.
FMSA Updates Fraudulent Crypto Companies List
According to a report in The Brussels Times, the Financial Services Authority of Belgium has added the company www.xtb-markets.com to its list of fraudulent crypto investment platforms. This takes the total number of firms with warnings issued about them by the watchdog to 121.
The financial agency states that it received a total of 334 reports from investors duped out of funds by the fraudulent firms throughout 2018. The total damages reported were more than 4.5 million euros. However, the FSMA suspects that the real number is far higher than that quoted, particularly given that many people will not report themselves as a victim of a scam. Some individuals will be far too ashamed to admit that they had been swindled in such a fashion.
According to the FSMA, the scams share a lot in common with one another. According to Finance Magnates, the watchdog wrote the following to accompany the updated listings:
“The principle remains the same: they offer you an investment they claim is secure, easy and very lucrative. They try to inspire confidence by assuring you that you don’t need to be an expert in cryptocurrencies in order to invest in them.”
The FSMA is one of the only financial agencies in the world that publishes a list of crypto companies it deems to be scam investment platforms. It first started issuing warnings in early 2018, when around 20 companies were added to the list.
The list is formulated using complaints from the Belgian public who have been scammed themselves or suspect some foul play at a given investment platform. The last time the FSMA added any crypto companies to it was in April when a further seven firms were included.
NewsBTC has reported on many fraudulent crypo asset firms previously. Generally speaking, if a company is offering guaranteed returns or astronomical profits from a small investment, you should be wary. As it so often does, the old adage applies here: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Related Reading: UK Financial Watchdog Mulls Ban on High Risk Crypto Derivatives
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