The Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) warns the public against the fraudulent use of the name and logo of the FSMA with the intention of misleading consumers.
The FSMA was recently informed that consumers are being contacted by email or phone by individuals who claim to be members of the FSMA’s staff and to be able to help people who were previously victims of fraud recover the losses incurred. Those persons also report having received contractual documents featuring the logo and the name of the FSMA. These are cases of 'recovery room' fraud.
To this end, fraudsters have used email addresses ending with '@fsmabelgium.com'. Emails received from such email addresses are not from the FSMA and should be considered fraudulent.
Whatever the scenario, these are cases of identity theft, whereby swindlers try to extort money and/or information from their victims. Information the FSMA has received has thus been forwarded to judicial authorities.
The FSMA recommends that consumers exercise extreme caution if they receive unsolicited contacts and warns against responding to any request for payment for financial services and/or products supposedly offered by the FSMA. The FSMA is not a financial institution and does not offer financial services or products to consumers. Moreover, supervisory authorities such as the FSMA are not competent to recover lost funds, and therefore will never contact investment fraud victims for this purpose. Lastly, the FSMA points out that it never asks consumers to share personal financial data or to pay for certain services. If you have the least doubt, please do not hesitate to contact the FSMA directly via the consumer contact form.