FXTB Fined £276,100 for Offering Unauthorized Investment Services

CFD Broker Forex TB Limited (FXTB, Patron FX) has been fined £276,100 for providing unauthorized investment advice to UK clients and failing to treat them fairly.

According to the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), FXTB pressured inexperienced clients and persuaded them to put their money into high-risk CFD trades without fully explaining the risks of trading in such assets, and even encouraged them to borrow money from friends and family to invest.

In addition, FTXB provided unauthorized investment advice to its clients and encouraged them to provide false information in order to become “professional clients”, leaving them lost protection as retail investors they would have had.

The FCA initially imposed a fine of £1.215 million, but this amount would put FXTB in financial difficulty.

Therese Chambers, joint Executive Director of Enforcement and Market Oversight at the FCA, said: “FXTB’s misconduct was particularly egregious since it relied on the exploitation of customers who, because of their inexperience, were particularly vulnerable.”

FXTB is based in Cyprus and is regulated by the Cyprus Securities and Investment Commission (CySEC).