Withdrawal problem with InvesttechFX broker

[Stelen]

I have sent them a withdraw notice for $ 500 usd to my paypal account ( from which I have made the deposit), they wrote back that my request is in process. Few days later still no money I wrote them again, then they said that I have made some standard trades on my mini account and refused to send me the 500 USD. On Dec 1st 2009 I had 2 open positions of trading, that day they closed both positions without any explanations with a loss of -290.00 (in my account at that point had free margin over 2200 USD). I wrote to them that I want to close my account immediately and withdraw all the funds. They wrote me back that they offer me $ 500 USD and close my account. I said NO, they offered 800 USD, I said NO and I wanted me to see all my trades in details describing my ''supposed illegal trades'' then the offer was 1000 usd. I said NO, I was still demanding explanation how they get to 1000 USD from 2200 USD. Never got a answer or explanation, I wrote to BBB in Canada, but nothing happened yet. So I just want to get my funds and close the account simply. In your opinion this legal and they have all the rights to offer me only a fraction of the funds? (even sending me detailed explanations how they get to 1000 USD from 2200 USD?)
Any suggestion/opnion is welcomed since I'm new to forex trading, also I can forward all email commnunications between me and InvesttechFX if anyone interested.
Almost all communications stopped from them, and so far I have not received any of my money yet.
Is this legal? or can I do anything about it? As far I'm considering they are a scam broker and just want to warn other potential and current investors

Thank you Lenka

 

[ns1000]

Take what you can from this company - it looks like seriously dodgy to me. It claims to be in Toronto, but the address given is a virtual office. It is not authorised to conduct investment business by the Ontario Securities Commission, nor is it a member of the Canadian regulatory organisation, IIROC. The leverage it offers is higher than that allowed under Canadian legislation. The terms of business are a nonsence - how can a non-dealing desk broker guarantee 1-pip spreads, when the spreads are out of their control. My guess, having read some of the Islamic account info on their website, is that they're actually in Malaysia

 

[everyonerich]

couldnt even find regulation... scam.

 

[Stelen]

Take what you can from this company - it looks like seriously dodgy to me. It claims to be in Toronto, but the address given is a virtual office. It is not authorised to conduct investment business by the Ontario Securities Commission, nor is it a member of the Canadian regulatory organisation, IIROC. The leverage it offers is higher than that allowed under Canadian legislation. The terms of business are a nonsence - how can a non-dealing desk broker guarantee 1-pip spreads, when the spreads are out of their control. My guess, having read some of the Islamic account info on their website, is that they're actually in Malaysia

Thanks for your comments,

I was wondering about the address also, but how can you actually find out that? I'm a novice in forex trading. BBB did nothing about the case, just closed it shortly after InvesttechFX wrote them a letter that is basically all my fault and I should have read the agreement about trading stanadard lots on mini account. Even I had only up to 2-3 trades totaling the most 50 USD profit, and it was ok untill wanted to close my account.
Also if it is such a illegal activity, why dont they dissable that option from the platform?

 

[ns1000]

Google the contact address, and the first thing that comes up is that it's a Virtual Office. Not sure who BBB are, but they're certainly not any Canadian regulator I've heard of. Try calling them and asking who they're regulated by, and the name of their compliance officer.

 

[Stelen]

Google the contact address, and the first thing that comes up is that it's a Virtual Office. Not sure who BBB are, but they're certainly not any Canadian regulator I've heard of. Try calling them and asking who they're regulated by, and the name of their compliance officer.

Yes I can see on Google that it is a virtual office space. BBB is ( Better Business Bureau).
Regulated by Federal Canadian Corporation Act, and the Forex Dealing Association, not sure what is that means.

 

[ns1000]

Yes I can see on Google that it is a virtual office space. BBB is ( Better Business Bureau).
Regulated by Federal Canadian Corporation Act, and the Forex Dealing Association, not sure what is that means.

Forex dealers in Canada are required to register as Investment Dealers with IIROC, and be authorised by the relevant Provincial regualtor. If they're in Toronto, this would be the Ontario Securities Commission. There's no such thing as regulation by the Corporation Act - all securities and investment activities are regulated at a Provincial level. This Forex Dealing Association sounds like something made up on the model of the Investment Dealers' Association (IDA - know called IIROC) or MFDA - Mutual Funds Dealers' Association.

I think you may struggle to get your money back. How did you send your money to them in the first place? If bank transfer, where was the bank?

I assume you've tried their compliance department. Ask them for contact details, or the website of this FDA.

 

[Stelen]

Forex dealers in Canada are required to register as Investment Dealers with IIROC, and be authorised by the relevant Provincial regualtor. If they're in Toronto, this would be the Ontario Securities Commission. There's no such thing as regulation by the Corporation Act - all securities and investment activities are regulated at a Provincial level. This Forex Dealing Association sounds like something made up on the model of the Investment Dealers' Association (IDA - know called IIROC) or MFDA - Mutual Funds Dealers' Association.

I think you may struggle to get your money back. How did you send your money to them in the first place? If bank transfer, where was the bank?

I assume you've tried their compliance department. Ask them for contact details, or the website of this FDA.

I have tried emailing back and forth, right now they are completely ignoring my emails, and avoiding answering all my questions. Called also but never returned any of my calls.
Just found out something, maybe the reason they are not regulated or getting away with these scams, because they are registered as ''Investtechfx software solutions company'' as a business, not as a forex broker. I'm searching the net and trying to locate or find a Canadian govermental or criminal investigation agency, where I can file a complaint report, and hopefully someone will look into it as a fraudulent business practice.

 

[ns1000]

Try the Ontario Securities Commission http://www.osc.gov.on.ca/en/1092.htm

I doubt these guys have more than a virtual presence in Canada, so you need to look at how to get your money back from the bank you sent it to. In the meantime, I would claw back whatever you can from them - if they offer $1000, take it first, then go after the balance.

 

[Stelen]

Try the Ontario Securities Commission http://www.osc.gov.on.ca/en/1092.htm

I doubt these guys have more than a virtual presence in Canada, so you need to look at how to get your money back from the bank you sent it to. In the meantime, I would claw back whatever you can from them - if they offer $1000, take it first, then go after the balance.

I have used Paypal to fund my account (little bit safer then credit cards, or bank transfer)
Also I have sent a complaint to OSC.

 

[pboyles]

You might try posting on forexpeacearmy.com I have seen cases in the past where they have resolved sush issues but I think it may be something of a long shot. If these people have set themselves up in a virtual office and are not regulated to carry out such business then I imagine their intention is to take as many funds as possible and then disappear with the money. They may be stringing you along for as long as possible and all the time taking in more funds before disappearing.

If you had used a credit card wouldnt you have some protection against such fraud?

 

[Stelen]

You might try posting on forexpeacearmy.com I have seen cases in the past where they have resolved sush issues but I think it may be something of a long shot. If these people have set themselves up in a virtual office and are not regulated to carry out such business then I imagine their intention is to take as many funds as possible and then disappear with the money. They may be stringing you along for as long as possible and all the time taking in more funds before disappearing.

If you had used a credit card wouldnt you have some protection against such fraud?

I have used Paypal , and forexpeacearmy.com is working on the case already. Just want this broker to make sure many people out there to see that they are scam broker.

 

[Ingot54]

I have used Paypal , and forexpeacearmy.com is working on the case already. Just want this broker to make sure many people out there to see that they are scam broker.

But why did you go outside the regulated operators anyway?

There are many legitimate brokers out there that are cheap enough these days on spread/commissions, and seem to have many contented clients. Surely the advantages of running with this virtual broker did not outweight the advantages of going with the mainstream?

Always consider what can be done if things go wrong, because when dealing with operators off-shore from your own country, things WILL go wrong, and your own government/regulators can not help you.

My motto is: "If you don't deal at home, you're alone."

You need to know that if necessary you can go into the business office of your broker, physically, and demand resolution of your issues.

I imagine right now there are unsuspecting readers of this thread, who are using the services of operators who will never remit profits, or refund unused funds, simply because they rely on the one-way-traffic of punters always blowing up their accounts.

When someone has a win, the problems start ... getting your money back can be a nightmare.

Anyway - getting back to the current situation ... PayPal may not like my saying this, but be careful of them. I warned them of a fraudulent operator who refused to "refund cheerfully, no questions asked", but they basically told me: "Too bad mate, our services are limited to the supply of the goods, not whether the goods were faulty."

I told PayPal that the operator was using PayPal to grab money through misrepresenting goods, but their dispute resolution service "didn't cover that."

In short, don't use PayPal ... use Clickbank if it is available.

Eventually I got resolution, and a speedy return of my money, after telling PayPal they had a duty of care to ensure their vendors were legitimate, and honored their guarantees. Even then it took a threat to paste the issue over every forum on the Internet, plus all the Current Affairs TV programmes I could find.

Suddenly they realised that the few cents commission they were making from this fraudulent vendor was not worth the thousands of dollars of bad publicity they would receive through some bad press ... a fact I also reminded them of.

I would definitely take PayPal to task over their relationship with this shonky FX Broker. PayPal has had a dream run because they do not have to deal with the wash-up of crooks and frauds, because of their terms of agreement.

That is not good enough. It is time PayPal bit the bullet and made their vendors accountable and responsible for the goods they truck through the front end of the business. Because out the back end sits a fat cat laughing all the way to the bank, protected by PayPal's liberal terms of association.

 

[Stelen]

But why did you go outside the regulated operators anyway?

There are many legitimate brokers out there that are cheap enough these days on spread/commissions, and seem to have many contented clients. Surely the advantages of running with this virtual broker did not outweight the advantages of going with the mainstream?

Always consider what can be done if things go wrong, because when dealing with operators off-shore from your own country, things WILL go wrong, and your own government/regulators can not help you.

My motto is: "If you don't deal at home, you're alone."

You need to know that if necessary you can go into the business office of your broker, physically, and demand resolution of your issues.

I imagine right now there are unsuspecting readers of this thread, who are using the services of operators who will never remit profits, or refund unused funds, simply because they rely on the one-way-traffic of punters always blowing up their accounts.

When someone has a win, the problems start ... getting your money back can be a nightmare.

Anyway - getting back to the current situation ... PayPal may not like my saying this, but be careful of them. I warned them of a fraudulent operator who refused to "refund cheerfully, no questions asked", but they basically told me: "Too bad mate, our services are limited to the supply of the goods, not whether the goods were faulty."

I told PayPal that the operator was using PayPal to grab money through misrepresenting goods, but their dispute resolution service "didn't cover that."

In short, don't use PayPal ... use Clickbank if it is available.

Eventually I got resolution, and a speedy return of my money, after telling PayPal they had a duty of care to ensure their vendors were legitimate, and honored their guarantees. Even then it took a threat to paste the issue over every forum on the Internet, plus all the Current Affairs TV programmes I could find.

Suddenly they realised that the few cents commission they were making from this fraudulent vendor was not worth the thousands of dollars of bad publicity they would receive through some bad press ... a fact I also reminded them of.

I would definitely take PayPal to task over their relationship with this shonky FX Broker. PayPal has had a dream run because they do not have to deal with the wash-up of crooks and frauds, because of their terms of agreement.

That is not good enough. It is time PayPal bit the bullet and made their vendors accountable and responsible for the goods they truck through the front end of the business. Because out the back end sits a fat cat laughing all the way to the bank, protected by PayPal's liberal terms of association.

Thanks a lot,

you got some great ideas, I'm trying and not going to stop untill I get all my funds.
I have sent several canadian agencies a complaint also. Hopefully they can assist me to resolve this issue, but I welcome any suggestion or comment.
Lenka

 

[Stelen]

Update on InvesttechFX

Hello all,

I have received all my funds from InvesttechFX today, my account is closed.
Thank you all for the comments.

 

[Ingot54]

Re: Update on InvesttechFX

Hello all,

I have received all my funds from InvesttechFX today, my account is closed.
Thank you all for the comments.

Hi Stelen

Can you share some of the circumstances of the refund?

Did Investtech have a change of heart, or did someone give them an injection of the "sudden compassion" drug, called adverse publicity?

Cheers

Ivan

 

[Stelen]

Hi Ingot 54,

I think the adverse publicity and Forexpeacearmy did the job. It tok 6 weeks.

 

[Jack Cruise]

I would like to bring to the attention of the trading community of how InvesttechFX is a scam company that is out to cheat people’s money. I strongly advise traders who have money with them to withdraw it immediately or those who intend to open with them, not to do so.

For the benefit of the trading community, I strongly urge the moderator not to remove this post (even if InvesttechFX force you to do so).

1. InvesttechFx moves clients fund without seeking clients approval
Clients’ funds are deposited into TD Canada Trust as instructed by InvesttechFX but they moved these funds out, without clients’ knowledge or approval, to the clearing department of a third party trading outfit.

2. InvesttechFX is NOT a member of CDIC and clients funds are not insured
InvesttechFX claims on their web-site that they insure clients’ funds up to USD100k. Legal background check has shown that they are NOT a member of Canadian Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC), in which they claimed they are. Further check with CDIC web-site also reveals that CDIC only insures Canadian dollar deposits and not deposits in any other currencies!


InvesttechFX is NOT a regulated or registered FX broker (they are just a software solutions company) and thus they do not have the proper business practice of a regulated FX broker. Their claim on their web-site about insurance of fund is very deceiving to clients and their business practice is unprofessional and unethical.

 

[miloud00]

Hi Stelen,

My name's fahim.
I have the same problem with Investtechfx.

How can proceed with this compagny.
I live in Canada.
I call them more than 7 times. I send them e-mailS. but no thing happened.
They told: in process, after : we wire the money to your bank account.
I requied withrawal before, more than 40days.

Excuse my english.

 

[Stelen]

Hi Fahim,

I have asked Forex Peace Army for assistance and Investech refunded all my money, read the website forum there, here is the link. Good luck
http://www.forexpeacearmy.com/public/review/www.investtechfx.com

My name's fahim.
I have the same problem with Investtechfx.

How can proceed with this compagny.
I live in Canada.
I call them more than 7 times. I send them e-mailS. but no thing happened.
They told: in process, after : we wire the money to your bank account.
I requied withrawal before, more than 40days.

Excuse my english.[/QUOTE]