PANews reported on July 6 that the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission reminded the public to be vigilant about seven entities suspected of engaging in fraudulent activities related to virtual assets. They operate under the following names: XTCQT, CEG, BTEPRO, Bitones.org, Yomaex Crypto Market Limited (also known as Yomaex), Bstor (also known as Bstorest), and Taurusemex.
The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission said that the suspected entities claimed to provide cryptocurrency trading services, and some of them used social media platforms or instant messaging software to guide investors to their respective websites to register as users to invest in cryptocurrencies.
Investors have reported problems withdrawing funds from the suspected entities. In some cases, the suspected entities suspended withdrawals by claiming that investor accounts were involved in money laundering or illegal funds. Investors were asked to pay high “fees” or “taxes” to process their withdrawal requests or to reactivate suspended accounts. One of the suspected entities, Taurusemex, also falsely claimed that investor accounts were regulated by the Securities and Futures Commission.
The police have taken action to block the relevant websites at the request of the SFC. Although the police have taken action, the public should be wary that scammers may continue to set up websites with similar domain names. The suspected entities and their respective websites were included in the Hong Kong SFC's warning list of suspicious virtual asset trading platforms on July 5, 2024.
