SEC Updates its Warning List, Adds 29 Unauthorised Firms

The (SEC) updated its warning list and added 29 unregistered firms that are primarily soliciting non-US investors earlier this week. Out of the 29 companies, 16 are soliciting entities, four are and 9 are bogus regulators.
In the US, financial firms that seek investors in the country to use their services are generally required to register with the SEC. To obtain a registration, companies must meet the minimal financial standards and disclosure, reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
The new additions have found their way onto the US regulator’s blacklist, otherwise known as PAUSE (Public Alert: Unregistered Soliciting Entities), as it found the firms did not meet these standards. Specifically, the found that the firms were providing inaccurate or misleading information about their location, registration or affiliation. With too many to name, you can see the list of unregulated firms .
However, the list doesn’t only display firms claiming to be registered, when they, in fact, are not. It also includes clone firms, which are companies that attempt to trick investors into thinking they are another company, which is often registered and credible. To achieve this, they often have similar names, addresses and website URLs. The list also highlights . These are firms that falsely claim to be government agencies or affiliates.
The updates to the list are part of the US regulator’s efforts to protect retail investors from scams and unauthorised firms. The changes were made by the SEC’s Division of Enforcement’s Office of Market Intelligence. The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy and the Office of International Affairs also helped coordinate the updates.
SEC registration does not completely protect investors