BREAKING! Blind Malaysian Lost over 430K to scammers!

For Loh Kong Ken, a 62-year-old retiree with visual impairment, his main aspiration was to secure enough savings to sustain his livelihood and achieve financial self-sufficiency during his retirement years.

After concluding his role as a student affairs coordinator at a private university in late 2020, Mr. Loh contemplated how he could manage the escalating cost of living, relying solely on his Employees Provident Fund (EPF) savings, which is analogous to Singapore's Central Provident Fund in Malaysia.

Upon hearing from acquaintances in his community about an investment fund promising monthly returns ranging from 6 to 8 percent, his interest was piqued.

“Some of them opted to invest in a fund called Cooper Markets, which purportedly represented a forex trading company with operations dating back to 2018, and they boasted about the substantial returns it generated,” he asserted.

“After conducting thorough research and a waiting period of six months, I eventually withdrew RM100,000 (equivalent to S$28,800) and became a participant in the scheme.”

Upon witnessing the lucrative profits, Mr. Loh extended his recommendation to his 58-year-old wife, who decided to match her husband's investment using her EPF savings.

Initially, Mr. Loh had formulated a plan to retain their funds for approximately a year, with the intention of doubling their value before proceeding to withdraw the entire sum.

Nevertheless, in an unfortunate turn of events during June 2021, approximately half a year after their initial investment, the balance of their funds plummeted abruptly.

“They effectively activated the 'kill switch',” he lamented.

Subsequent to this incident, desperate attempts were made through numerous calls and inquiries directed at the fund's operators, yet all went unanswered.

Mr. Loh found himself among a group of 30 individuals, primarily consisting of those aged 55 and above from the visually impaired community. Collectively, they suffered losses amounting to about RM1.5 million, having invested varying sums between RM5,000 and RM100,000 into the fraudulent scheme.

The fund in question, CP Markets (Cooper Markets) Malaysia, found itself included in the Malaysia Securities Commission's Investor Alert List in January 2021. This list serves as a cautionary advisory to the public, urging them to refrain from investing with entities that lack the proper licensing or approval from the commission.

Mr. Mohd Moktar Soon, a retired telephonist at the age of 68, initially approached the scheme with skepticism. However, he ultimately suffered losses amounting to RM85,000.

In his account, he shared, “I liquidated my house and allocated a significant portion of the proceeds to invest in the fund. When I eventually realized the fraudulent nature of the scheme, it was already too late. We came to understand that the live trading platform application we were instructed to monitor was manipulated.”

Mr. Moktar Soon continues to grapple with a sense of disappointment and remorse. He expresses a hopeful sentiment, stating, “I earnestly wish for someone to assist us in recovering at least a portion of our incurred losses.”

Mr. Ng, a 58-year-old masseur who prefers to remain anonymous, emerged as another unfortunate victim, facing a loss of RM25,000. Strikingly, he was the pioneering individual to invest in the fund and subsequently introduced it to others.

Mr. Ng recounted the origins of his involvement, stating, “The journey began when a regular massage client of mine introduced the scheme while receiving a massage. I went on to introduce this opportunity to my relatives and friends. We were advised to refrain from making any withdrawals and instead allow the interest to compound.”

He candidly expressed the disheartening outcome: “Ultimately, the entire venture collapsed, resulting in a complete loss.”

Each of these three men believed that the scheme carried legitimacy, largely influenced by some high-profile endorsements provided by its promoters. These promoters asserted that prominent figures, including VVIPs and influential figures within the investment industry oversaw the fund.

A number of the visually impaired individuals who fell victim to the scam had indeed filed police reports initially. However, they opted not to pursue the matter further due to the challenges they faced in making multiple trips to unfamiliar locations for the purpose of recording their statements.

Explaining this decision, Mr. Ng stated, “The process can be quite demanding and cumbersome for someone who is blind, particularly when it involves traveling to unfamiliar destinations. Consequently, we informed the police about our constraints and chose not to proceed with the matter.”

An increasing number of individuals are resorting to illegal means to set up scams to make quick money within a short period of time. Promising high returns or guaranteed winning packages are consistent tactics used in their fraudulent activities. However, many people still enter this trap with a mindset of taking a gamble, losing their hard-earned money in the process.

To help users exercise greater caution in selecting trading platforms, WikiFX has introduced a thoughtful feature. Any broker listed on Malaysia's Securities Commission blacklist will pop-up a warning, alerting users. This prompts users to exercise heightened vigilance and make informed choices, even employing filters to narrow down broker options.

In addition, users can also navigate to the “All” section within the WikiFX App, and then select “Blacklist” to access the comprehensive list of all entities blacklisted by Malaysia's Securities Commission (SC). Please note that your app's selected region must be Malaysia for this feature to be available.

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