The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) alerts the financial services community and members of the public to a fake letter in which the DFSA and a member of its senior management were impersonated. The fake letter was issued by Abu Dhabi Financial Brokers. On their website at https://www.abudhabifinancialbrokers.com/, Abu Dhabi Financial Brokers falsely claim to be regulated by the DFSA.
The scammers issued a fake letter which falsely states that it was sent from the DFSA on behalf of the Ministry of Interior of The Slovak Republic. The fake letter states that in order for a “Transfer Release Order (TRO)” to be issued for an investment bank to initiate client wire transfer of funds, a National Risk Assessment compliance check is required. The fake letter further states that in order to disburse and remit the amount to the client’s bank account, the client is required to provide a Foreign Investment Grant Certification (FIGC) within 7 days. The scammers recommend that a DFSA affiliated fiduciary can be used to obtain the FIGC within the stipulated deadline for a fee of 1%.
A copy of the fake letter can be found here.
In an attempt to authenticate the letter, the scammers also fraudulently used the following without authority:
• the logo, name, address and purported stamp of the DFSA; and
• the name, position held and purported signature of a member of the DFSA’s senior management.
The DFSA informs you that the letter is fictitious and was not sent out by the DFSA. The DFSA also informs you that:
• Abu Dhabi Financial Brokers is not regulated by the DFSA and is not connected in any way whatsoever with the DFSA;
• Abu Dhabi Financial Brokers has no offices in the DIFC and is not a DIFC company;
•The DFSA does not regulate Firms outside the DIFC; and
•The DFSA does not make recommendations concerning wire transfers or the release of funds.
The DFSA strongly advises that you do not respond to the perpetrators of the scam, and under no circumstances should you send or give any money to any party connected to the scam.
On 5 April 2020 the DFSA issued an alert to consumers warning about an increase in scams and other fraudulent activity since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The original alert can be viewed by going to: INCREASE IN SCAMS DURING COVID-19
The DFSA has a page on its website dedicated to alerts which it has issued about scams. All alerts issued by the DFSA may be accessed by going to: ALERTS
The DFSA has also issued warnings and guidance about the common types of scams perpetrated on consumers. For more information on these scams, please go to: HOW TO AVOID BEING SCAMMED
The DFSA encourages consumers to refer to the list of regulated Firms and Authorised Individuals licensed by the DFSA that is available on the DFSA's: PUBLIC REGISTER
If you have any concerns about the authenticity of any correspondence or documents that purport to be issued by the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), DFSA or a DFSA regulated Firm, you should direct your concerns to the DIFC on Tel:+971 4 362 2222 and to the DFSA via the DFSA Complaints function on: COMPLAINTS
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