REGINA — The Financial and Consumer Affairs Authority of Saskatchewan (FCAA) is warning Saskatchewan residents about the online entities known as Aquila Markets and AlphaCap.ai.
Aquila Markets claims to offer Saskatchewan residents trading opportunities including stocks, cryptocurrencies, commodities, forex, currency pairs, equity indices and contracts for difference (CFDs). AlphaCap.ai claims to offer Saskatchewan residents trading opportunities including cryptocurrencies and cryptocurrency pairs.
Aquila Markets and AlphaCap.ai are not registered with the FCAA to trade or sell securities or derivatives in Saskatchewan. The FCAA cautions investors and consumers not to send money to companies that are not registered in Saskatchewan, as they may not be legitimate businesses.
If you have invested with Aquila Markets, AlphaCap.ai or anyone claiming to be acting on their behalf, contact the FCAA's Securities Division at 306-787-5645.
"Checking the registration status of any investment entities through aretheyregistered.ca is a vital step for Saskatchewan residents looking to invest," FCAA Securities Division Executive Director Dean Murrison said. "Saskatchewan investors should not invest with anyone not registered to sell securities or derivatives in Saskatchewan."
In Saskatchewan, individuals or companies need to be registered with the FCAA to trade or sell securities or derivatives. The registration provisions of The Securities Act, 1988, and accompanying regulations are intended to ensure that only honest and knowledgeable people are allowed to sell securities and derivatives and that their businesses are financially stable.
This alert applies only to the online entities using the websites "aquilamarkets com", "aquila-markets com" and "AlphaCap ai" (these URLs have been manually altered so as not to be interactive).
Tips to protect yourself:
- Always verify that the person or company is registered in Saskatchewan to sell or advise about securities or derivatives. To check registration, visit The Canadian Securities Administrators' National Registration Search at aretheyregistered.ca.
- Know exactly what you are investing in. Make sure you understand how the investment, product or service works.
- Get a second opinion and seek professional advice about the investment.
- Do not allow unknown or unverified individuals to remotely access your computer.
- Never make an investment decision based on a notable figure endorsement. Scammers often create fake social media posts or news articles claiming an investment is endorsed by a notable figure.
- Do not forward money to anyone who has contacted you with an offer to recover money you lost on an investment. This is likely a "recovery scam".
