On 17 March 2020, 32-year-old Lee Chengyi, Adrian (“Adrian Lee”), was convicted of one charge under Section 82 of the Securities and Futures Act (“SFA”) for carrying on business in fund management, a regulated activity in the SFA, without a capital markets services licence. He was sentenced to a fine of $15,000.
Adrian Lee had collected a total of $160,000 from five individuals between August and September 2017 to trade in leveraged foreign exchange (“forex”) on their behalf. The agreement between him and each individual was that they would each share equally in the profits from his trades. By November 2017, the losses from the forex trades had wiped out the full sum of the invested capital.
Members of the public are advised not to deal with unregulated entities or persons when they come across such investment opportunities. The Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (“MAS”) regulatory framework was put in place to ensure that only competent and professional persons may provide such financial services. If you choose to deal with unregulated entities or persons, you will forgo the protection given under MAS’ regulations.
Before committing to an investment, always Ask, Check and Confirm.
· ASK
ASK as many questions as you need to fully understand the investment opportunity. If the company is unable to, or avoids answering any of your questions, be wary!
· CHECK
CHECK on the company, its owners, directors and management members to assess if the opportunity is genuine.
· CONFIRM
CONFIRM the company’s and representatives’ credentials by using available resources, including the Financial Institutions Directory, Register of Representatives and Investor Alert List on the MAS’ website (www.mas.gov.sg).SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
17 March 2020 @ 11:40 AM