KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 4): Alibaba International Invest has recently been added to the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) investor alert list of unauthorised websites, investment products, companies and individuals.
According to the list published on the SC's website, the regulator said Alibaba International Invest is a possible clone of China-based Alibaba Group and is carrying on unlicensed capital market activities.
Alibaba International Invest is among 19 other entries including 10 digital asset exchanges (DAX) recently added by the SC to its investor alert list.
The list now comprises about 400 unauthorised websites, investment products, companies and individuals, including 30 DAX.
The SC has cautioned the public of a sharp increase in clone firm scams this year, perpetrated by companies that fraudulently impersonate legitimate entities including misusing names and logos of public-listed companies (PLCs).
The regulator has also cautioned investors against investing in unauthorised DAX operating in Malaysia, following an increase in the number of queries and complaints the regulator has received about them.
The SC said these clone firms offer non-existent investment opportunities including in the shares of PLCs, promising unrealistically high returns within a short span of time.
In May, the SC also issued an alert against fraudulent clone firms posing as licensed capital market intermediaries.