It started with a Facebook message from a friend of mine on a dark cold clear Wednesday night…

“Chris. I’m in a Hotel (nothing new there)….and there are a couple of chaps talking about how to go from Platinum 1000 to Chairman. It sounds like a Ponzi scheme to me and they’re trying to sign up the people listening…”

So, after finishing two days of pretty intensive exams and at a bit of a loose end I thought I’d spend a couple of minutes checking out what ‘Platinum 1000’ meant and what it took to become a ‘Chairman’ as it sounded quite good on the surface!

To say it took me a couple of minutes to dig below the surface would have been an overstatement. It took me about 40 seconds…

A quick google search of the words “Platinum 1000 and Chairman’ let me to an organisation called International Markets Live.

Another quick google search let me to this page (https://www.fca.org.uk/news/warnings/international-markets-live-limited) where the FCA warn consumers that this firm isn’t regulated and ‘the firm isn’t authorised by us and it targeting people in the uk’…

….clearly they were I thought! They’re in a hotel, probably in a bunch of hotels across the UK, doing it right now.

This is where I start to get annoyed. One of the things that frustrates and annoys me the most is people who work hard being sold a dream based on false promises.

Anybody who knows me well knows that I’ve got a bit of a rule when it comes to engagement on social media. I keep it positive. However yesterday, on that rainy Wednesday night, I was a little annoyed and felt it was important to share my thoughts…

Here’s what I shared on my Facebook Feed…

However I’m conscious, in the bright cold light of Thursday morning, that whilst my Wednesday night rant will reach a couple of people, it’s unlikely to have loads of impact.

Hopefully a few more people will read this blog and understand that a few google searches might reveal whether you should listen more, or more likely if it’s linked to foreign exchange trading to accumulate wealth, run a mile.

Also, you can report potential scams to the FCA and you’ll be doing your bit to close down some of the firms who steal peoples life savings. You can do this here:-

https://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/report-scam-unauthorised-firm

…and as always, and like my friend, feel free to let me know about anything you hear that sounds particularly dodgy. I’ll always do what I can to highlight what individuals need to be cautious of…

Have a lovely day.