The FinancialHong Kong’s financial regulator, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has launched a Chinese language Facebook page in order to, among other things, warn investors and traders about new sophisticated online schemes targeting equities trading.
The regulator provided examples of financial fraud that is increasingly taking place online and on social media, including websites and apps like Facebook, Instagram, WeChat, Whatsapp, Telegram, and others. The SFC particularly noted so-called “ramp and dump” scams, where victims are encouraged to trade a particular equity product in order to either increase or decrease its market value.
Such scams are often publicized by impersonators of popular market analysts, commentators, and even celebrities and the SFC indicated that some 20% of all market manipulation cases that it deals with today have to do with such fraudulent schemes.
We have previously published a guide on how to avoid scams online and once again encourage traders of all experience levels to be vigilant when approached online or on social media with offers to trade or invest funds.
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