SEC Facebook

This Advisory is prompted by information gathered by the
Commission
on
QUICK
OPTIONS
which is being operated
by individual/s
under the pseudonym
“PRINCE TOH
REEZ”.
Based on information gathered by the Commission and Facebook Messenger
Group Chat conversations,
QUICK OPTIONS
appears to be the new name under which
ETHMARKET LLC/ ETHMARKET LLC PH.
is operating after an Advisory was posted
on
ETHMARKET LLC/ETHMARKET LLC PH.
Both
QUICK OPTIONS
and
ETHMARKET LLC/ETHMARKET LLC PH.
are being operated by an individual or
individuals hiding behind the pseudonym
“PRINCE TOH REEZ.”
Based on Facebook (FB) postings, the
QUICK OPTIONS Trading Platform
has
two (2) main packages which it is using to entice the public to invest in the said entity,
namely: the (1) Bearish package; and (2) Bullish package. Every entry in these packages
are stated to have an
expected income of two hundred percent (200%)
at th
e end of
the investment duration which is usually
seven (7)
days for a minimum amount of Ten
Dollars ($10.00) deposit to a maximum of up to Four Hundred Dollars ($400.00) deposit
and investors can also earn bonuses from direct referrals.
Accordingly, the
scheme of
QUICK OPTIONS
involves the offering and sale of
securities, in the form of investment contracts, to the public.
Hence,
the said offer and
sale of securities must be duly registered with the Commission
and that the concerned
corporation and/or its agents must have appropriate registration and/or license to sell
such securities to the public in accordance with
Section 8 of the
Securities Regulation
Code
(SRC).
However, per record of the Commission,
QUICK
OPTIONS
and its operator,
PRINCE TOH REEZ
are
NOT REGISTERED
as a corporation or partnership with the
Commission
and have
NO SECONDARY LICENSE
to solicit, accept or take
investments/placements from the public nor to issue investment contracts and other
forms
of securities defined under Section 3 of the Securities Regulation Code (SRC)
.
In view thereof, the public is hereby advised to
STOP INVESTING
in the
investment scheme being offered by
QUICK OPTIONS
and its
representatives
or
any
entities engaged i
n investment schemes
which promises ridiculous rates of return with
little or no risks or show any other indications or characteristics of a
Ponzi Scheme
.
The public must be wary that
any
promise of ridiculous rates of return with little or
no risks is an indication of a
Ponzi Scheme
where monies from new investors are used
in paying fake “profits” to earlier investors. Also, any promise that defies the normal
financial logic is surely unre
liable and sketchy.
The public is also advised to be wary of entities being operated under various
pseudonyms which tend to hide the identity of the true operators of the scheme and those
who change the name/s of the entities involved after the posting of
a SEC Advisory or
when investors suddenly fail to receive their pay
outs
. These are
common signs of a
SCAM
.
The public
should
be vigilant and smart
when it comes to investing their hard
earned money
and not
be
easily swayed or fooled by
easily created
fancy looking
websites with pictures and images which can easily be copied from the internet portraying
unverified trading or business activities and social media posts
of individuals
claiming to
have earned huge amounts of profits from their investments w
hich can likewise be easily
fabricated.
It must be clear that entities engaged in such activities likely tend to disappear
shortly to the prejudice of their stakeholders.
Consequently, the Commission encourages the public to be prudent in making or
placing their monies on these entities especially during this pandemic.
Violators are warned that
aside from the strict penalties imposed by the
Commission for violations of the
Securities Regulation Code, the Revised Corporation
Code, and such other rule
s and regulation it enforces
, the
Bayanihan to Heal as One
Act
(
Republic Act No. 11469
) also punishes those participating in cyber incidents that
make use or take advantage of the current crisis situation to prey on the public through
scams, phishing,
fraudulent emails, or other similar acts.
In addition, those who act as salesmen, brokers, dealers or agents of
QUICK
OPTIONS
in selling or convincing people to invest in the investment scheme being offered
by said entity including solicitations and recru
itment through the internet may likewise be
criminally prosecuted and penalized with a maximum fine of Five Million pesos
(P5,000,000.00) or penalty of Twenty
–
one (21) years of imprisonment or both pursuant to
Sections 28 and 73 of the SRC.
Further, thos
e who invite or recruit others to join or invest in such venture or offer
investment contracts or securities to the public may incur criminally liability, or otherwise
be sanctioned or penalized accordingly as held by the Supreme Court in the case of
Secur
ities and Exchange Commission vs. Oudine Santos
(G.R. No. 195542, 19 March
2014).
The names of all those involved will also be reported to the Bureau of Internal
Revenue (BIR) so that the appropriate penalties and/or taxes be correspondingly
assessed.
The Commission will also not hesitate to report violators to the National Bureau of
Investigation (NBI) for violation of the
Cybercrime Prevention Act
,
the
Bayanihan to
Heal as One Act
(
Republic Act No. 11469
)
and other violations related to their fraudule
nt
activities.
Should you have any information regarding the operation of
QUICK OPTIONS
or
any investment solicitation activity by any individual or group of individuals representing
QUICK OPTIONS
, please send your report to the Enforcement and Investor Protection
Department at
epd@sec.gov.ph
For the guidance of the public.
Pasay City,
June 23, 2020