Order: Crypto and Forex Firm Trading Mostly in Falsehoods

Apr 10
2019

Texas Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles took emergency action April 9 to stop an international offering of cryptocurrency and foreign currency investments by a company using a phony address and falsely claiming it is registered as a broker-dealer and investment adviser.

The Emergency Cease and Desist Order was entered against FxBitGlobe, a company that claims to be one of the world’s leading investment companies that is trading cryptocurrencies, foreign currency, binary options, and insurance investments. FxBitGlobe says it was founded in 2014 and has locations in Houston, the United Kingdom, Germany, China, and Malaysia.

FxBitGlobe is offering investments in products tied to cryptocurrencies, forex, binary options, and insurance. The company is promising monthly returns of between 25% and 70%, depending on the size of the initial investment.

The company is intentionally failing to disclose any information about how it can generate those returns, however.

According to the order, FxBitGlobe is not disclosing its principals or their experience. Nor is it informing investors about its assets, liabilities, capitalization, and any other financial information that demonstrates it can pay a fixed rate of return from dealing in historically risky and volatile assets.

FxBitGlobe is telling potential investors that any risks associated with the investments are described in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. There are no such filings, according to the order, and FxBitGlobe is not, as it claims, registered with the SEC and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

Besides claiming phantom registrations with regulators and non-existent regulatory filings, FxBitGlobe is providing investors an address in Houston – 1210 Smith St., 77002 – that does not exist.

In addition to offering unregistered investments, the company is recruiting unregistered sales agents and promising them a commission equal to 5% of a new client’s principal investment.

FxBitGlobe has 31 days to challenge the order at the State Office of Administrative Hearings in Austin.