The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has warned the public of suspected virtual asset fraud involving a purported virtual asset trading platform (VATP) operating under the name of BitForex.
BitForex, apparently headquartered in Hong Kong, has neither been licensed by the SFC nor applied to the SFC for a licence to operate a VATP in Hong Kong.
According to the SFC, victims have experienced increasing difficulties over the past few days in withdrawing assets from the platform under the guise of “wallet and website maintenance”. Victims are now reporting that the website of BitForex has been shut down, thus preventing them from accessing their own accounts and withdrawing assets held with BitForex.
The SFC posted BitForex and its websites on the Suspicious Virtual Asset Trading Platforms Alert List on 4 March 2024. At the SFC’s request, the Hong Kong Police Force has taken steps to block access to relevant websites links and take down relevant social media pages.
The SFC also warned the public against suspicious websites impersonating two licensed virtual asset trading platforms:
HSKEX, which impersonates Hash Blockchain Limited, operates at https://www.hskexpro.com, https://hskex.com, https://www.hskexs.com and https://hskexit.com/
These two websites: www.oslexu.com and www.oslint.com impersonate OSL Digital Securities Limited.
The websites were posted on the SFC’s Suspicious Virtual Asset Trading Platforms Alert List on 4 March 2024 following reports on fund withdrawal difficulties. Victims also said they were asked to pay exorbitant “fees and taxes” to withdraw their funds from the websites. At the SFC’s request, the Hong Kong Police Force has taken steps to block access to relevant websites.
