The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) warns the public to exercise caution when conducting financial services business with individual using the name Ms Annelize Van Peterson (Ms Van Peterson) and purporting to be a representative of 27Four Investment Managers (Pty) Ltd (27Four Investment Managers) with FSP number 31045.
It has come to the FSCA’s attention that Ms Van Peterson is using the FSP number of 27Four Investment Managers to solicit and promote investments. She offers members of the public a return of R6000 from an initial investment of R300. 27Four Investment Managers confirmed that it is not associated with Ms Van Peterson.
While the FSCA does not comment on the specifics of Ms Van Peterson business, it must be noted that Ms Van Peterson is not authorised by the FSCA to provide financial services to members of the public. Ms Van Peterson failed to respond to FSCA enquiries.
The public is strongly urged to exercise caution when considering unsolicited investment or trading offers, especially those communicated through social media. The public is urged to act with care when investing their funds. There are many fraudsters operating scams, and the number is growing. South Africans lose millions of rands every year to fraudsters. Illegal operations are sometimes well-disguised as legitimate operations. The public is advised to be on the lookout for certain tell-tale danger signs when approached by persons offering attractive investment opportunities.
These red flags include:
- Unrealistic or exaggerated returns
- Offers made on social media platforms
- Requirements to pay for services upfront
- Requirements to pay more money to have your investments returned
- Requirements to pay for training
- Claims that you must act and pay urgently i.e. creating a sense of urgency
- Vague information about the investment product.
Members of the public may use one of the following methods to confirm whether a service provider or person is authorised to act as an FSP by the FSCA, including to verify their FSP number:
To confirm whether a person or institution is authorised, contact the FSCA on the toll-free number 0800 110 443 or visit https://www.fsca.co.za/Fais/Search_FSP.htm.
Suspicious activities can be reported via the Ethics and Fraud Hotline at 0800 313 626, by email at fsca@behonest.co.za, or online at www.behonest.co.za.