According to Odaily, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong has issued a warning to the public against seven entities suspected of engaging in fraudulent activities related to virtual assets. The entities operate under the names XTCQT, CEG, BTEPRO, Bitones.org, Yomaex Crypto Market Limited (also known as Yomaex), Bstor (also known as Bstorest), and Taurusemex.
These entities claim to provide cryptocurrency trading services. Some of them have used social media platforms or instant messaging software to guide investors to their respective websites to register as cryptocurrency users. There have been reports of investors encountering issues when attempting to withdraw from these entities. In some cases, the entities have alleged that the investor's account is involved in money laundering or illegal funds, leading to a suspension of withdrawals. Investors are then asked to pay hefty 'fees' or 'taxes' to process their withdrawal requests or reactivate their suspended accounts. One of the entities, Taurusemex, falsely claimed that investor accounts were regulated by the SFC.
The police have taken action to block the relevant websites at the request of the SFC. Despite these actions, the public is advised to remain vigilant as fraudsters may continue to establish websites with similar domain names. The suspected entities and their respective websites were added to the SFC's warning list of suspicious virtual asset trading platforms on July 5, 2024.