eToro Impersonation Scam: FCA Issues Warning on Clone Firm Deception

<p>The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
has issued a warning to the public regarding a clone firm operating under the
names Expotoro, Tratoro, and PayBack Toro. The fraudulent entity has been
falsely claiming to be an authorized firm by the FCA, engaging in unauthorized
financial services activities.</p><p>Identifying and Avoiding Clone Firms in
Financial Services</p><p>The FCA has emphasized that this clone
firm operating under Expotoro/Tratoro/PayBack Toro are not authorized by
them, and individuals should exercise caution when dealing with any entity
claiming to represent these names. Clone firms often use deceptive tactics,
including providing false contact details, email addresses, telephone numbers,
and even postal addresses. These fraudulent entities may also attempt to mimic
the details of legitimate authorized firms, such as in the case of eToro.</p><p>The authorized firm, eToro, has no
affiliation with the clone firm. The FCA advises the public to verify the
credentials of any financial service provider and cross-reference information
with the FCA's official records. The organization further emphasized to exercise
due diligence and to report any suspicious activity to the FCA.</p><p>Clone firms often adapt and may change
their contact details over time, making it essential for individuals to stay
vigilant and regularly check the FCA warning list for updates on unauthorized
and clone firms. </p><blockquote><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We’ve issued 52 new <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FCAwarnings?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FCAwarnings</a> to unauthorised and clone firms in the last 7 days. Protect yourself and find all recent warnings <a href="https://t.co/0qLeqfKYJ0">https://t.co/0qLeqfKYJ0</a> <a href="https://t.co/Gbwh1noXti">pic.twitter.com/Gbwh1noXti</a></p>— Financial Conduct Authority (@TheFCA) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheFCA/status/1725483989870236029?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 17, 2023</a></blockquote><p>CNMV Identifies ExpToro's Deceptive Similarity to
eToro</p><p>In
an earlier report, <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/">Finance Magnates</a>
wrote that <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/forex/etoro-clone-among-eight-entities-flagged-by-cnmv/">the
Spanish Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV) had</a> flagged eight entities for unauthorized activities in
the FX/CFD and crypto services realm, potentially posing risks to retail
clients.</p><p>The
newly listed entities, including Easy to Invest, El Comercio IX, Etora Grand,
Pivotal Coin Net, Thor FX, Tools4Deals, Xifra Global, and ExpToro, lack the
necessary licenses to operate in these financial sectors, according to CNMV
reports.</p><blockquote><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CNMV?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CNMV</a> releases new warnings, and one entity looks similar to <a href="https://twitter.com/eToro?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@eToro</a>. Beware the potential <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/clone?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#clone</a>! <a href="https://t.co/zfF8oNrP7i">pic.twitter.com/zfF8oNrP7i</a></p>— Damian Chmiel (@ChmielDk) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChmielDk/status/1724009620983681119?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 13, 2023</a></blockquote><p>ExpToro,
in particular, has drawn attention due to its name's striking similarity to <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/etoro/">eToro</a>. The CNMV has warned that ExpToro may fall into the category of clone firms, utilizing similar names
and visual elements to reputable platforms in order to confuse investors.</p><p>This
warning follows recent alerts by the CNMV, including one about Bits Panda,
impersonating <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/bitpanda/">Bitpanda</a>,
a cryptocurrency platform. Furthermore, the regulator has added four FX/CFD market
entities to its warning list in the past week.</p>

This article was written by Tareq Sikder at www.financemagnates.com.