Beware of Fake Guaranteed FINRA Investment Pitches

Investors need to be careful about whose advice they trust when making decisions about what to do with their money. Unfortunately, if investors trust the wrong people to provide them with financial help, they could face substantial losses. In many cases, California securities fraud lawyers can help victims who have been defrauded to recover funds. For example, if you were defrauded by an insurance agent or insurer selling annuities to you which weren’t the right investment for you, Evans Law Firm, Inc. can help you to pursue a claim to recover the money you lost due to the bad financial advice.

Sometimes, however, those who perpetrate a scam are simple thieves or fraudsters who are difficult to find and who may not have the means to repay you. Avoiding becoming caught up in a scam with these types of fraudsters is especially essential, which means you need to keep on top of new tricks that dishonest people use to separate you from your money.  Just recently, for example, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has begun issuing warnings of new scams involving fraudsters posing as regulators while perpetrating an advanced fee scam.

Advanced Fee Scammers Pretend to be From FINRA

There are a number of different scams in which fraudsters impersonate regulators from FINRA or impersonate the CEO of FINRA. The fraudsters make repeated telephone calls to investors who they are targeting, and sometimes send notices or letters via email or in the mail to those who are being scammed as well.  The documents and notices sent to the victims are documents that appear to be legitimate and that appear to be from FINRA.

While pretending to be FINRA regulators or pretending to be the CEO, the scammers target people in a number of ways.

In some cases, the scammers pretend that FINRA is guaranteeing an investment opportunity which investors need to send money in to take advantage of. This FINRA scam typically involves fraudsters obtaining the names of shareholders from companies that have gone bankrupt or from other shareholder lists that contain contact information and financial details.  The scammers may be told there will be a buyback of underperforming shares or shares that have no value – but they have to send in money to cover regulatory costs first. Unfortunately, once the scammers send in the funds, the stock buyback never materializes and they do not get their money.

In another scam, the fraudsters pretend that the CEO of FINRA is a financial manager of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). They claim that the target of the scam has been given an inheritance which he must travel outside of the country to obtain. Those who are targeted are asked to provide personal information, including a copy of passports, to obtain funds that have been approved for release from IMF.

These are just a few of several key scams that target vulnerable people who are at risk of financial loss. It’s imperative you research investment opportunities carefully and don’t provide money or personal information to anyone you don’t know.

Of course, even when working with people who appear to be trusted advisors, you could still be scammed. You should talk with California securities fraud lawyers to find out about what you can do if you’ve been victimized and lost funds, as Evans Law can often help those targeted by dishonest financial professionals to recover funds they’ve lost. Contact Evans Law Firm online or call 415-441-8669 for a free initial consultation today.