The Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) has published its dashboard for the first half of 2024. The dashboard provides statistics and an overview of the main trends in investment fraud.
Crypto scams dominate reports
The latest dashboard highlights several key points: Fraudulent trading platforms and cryptocurrency scams continue to account for around half of the reports of illegal activity received by the FSMA.
“Recovery room” scams, a type of fraud in which victims of previous scams are contacted and promised help in recouping losses for a fee, are on the rise. The number of cases has increased by 59% compared to the same period in 2023.
FSMA sees more reports
FSMA has seen a significant increase in consumer reports in the first half of 2024. In the first six months of 2024, FSMA received 1,332 consumer reports of unlawful activity. In 2023, FSMA received a total of 925 reports in the first half of the year. This is an increase of 44%.
Of these reports, 52.3% were complaints from consumers who had lost money due to investment scams or false credit offers. The remaining reports were questions from consumers who asked FSMA to provide information about illegal activity or suspicious market participants, but who had not yet paid any money.
