- The Financial Sector Conduct Authority says it is investigating a Stellenbosch-headquartered company that accepts funds via Bitcoin.
- The regular is recommending that clients "request refunds into their own accounts as soon as possible".
- Mirror Trading International says on its website that it "takes the hassle out of forex trading by doing it all for you, creating a truly passive income".
Mirror Trading International (MTI), a Stellenbosch-headquartered company that accepts client funds via the cryptocurrency Bitcoin, is being investigated by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority.
The regular on Wednesday said that it was recommending that clients "request refunds into their own accounts as soon as possible".
It is of the view that MIT is conducting business that requires it to be in possession of a financial service provider licence.
"MTI has undertaken to inform all of its clients of the investigation and to provide the opportunity to all its clients to withdraw their assets that are with MTI," said the FSCA.
It added that the returns on investments being claimed by MTI seem "far-fetched and unrealistic".
"According to MTI its bot-trading is able to generate consistent profits of an average of 10% per month. The FSCA warns the public that MTI is not licensed to conduct the proclaimed business that they are conducting and that they are aware of the need fora FSP licence."
This comes after authorities in Texas in July ordered MTI to stop trading in the US State after the company was fingered as a “multilevel marketing get-rich quick scheme”.
MTI said at the time that it had "every intention of working with regulating bodies to understand our model and to ensure that we serve our members legally and effectively".
The group, on its website, says that it "take[s] the hassle out of forex trading by doing it all for you, creating a truly passive income".
It claims it does not need to recruit new members to remain operational, as "members receive trading bonuses from the daily trades and not from new members".
It boasts of having over 100 000 members in 190 countries.
The FSCA said its investigation into MTI was ongoing and it is reviewing information as it becomes available. It will involve the South African Police Service if the discrepancies are confirmed.
MTI did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent to an email address on its website.
