Trading platform- advice please

moneyhelpuser5

Hi,

After seeing various and repeated ads regarding a CFD/Forex/ETF trading platform on Youtube and other places, I decided to try it. I had no experience. Long story short, it did not work out and unfortunately, the amount I lost was quite close to 6 figures.

I contacted both the FCA and the CAB, and they have said I need to complain via the Financial Ombudsman instead. Will it be worth trying this, based on the facts that a large amount of money could be deposited without little warning, and the repeated ads shown with little warning that so much money could be lost? I would appreciate advice on whether this route may be worth it, but please don't be judegmental.

Let this also be a warning to anyone else tempted to try these platforms with zero experience. Thank you in advance.

SonOf

After seeing various and repeated ads regarding a CFD/Forex/ETF trading platform on Youtube and other places, I decided to try it. I had no experience. Long story short, it did not work out and unfortunately, the amount I lost was quite close to 6 figures.

That is a very common scenario.

I contacted both the FCA and the CAB, and they have said I need to complain via the Financial Ombudsman instead.

Not quite correct. You complain to the firm that provided you the advice. They then have 8 weeks to reply before you can get access to the FOS. However, its likely the firm you used didnt provide advice and you just did these things yourself. So, it is difficult to see what you would have to complain about.

What exactly would you be alleging that they did wrong?
Maybe name the platform as there is probably someone here that have used them and will know what risk warnings they give (or we can visit their site and view the risk warnings).

Remember that when you bypass an adviser and choose to go direct, you take on responsibility for your actions. The platform will have some requirements but not to the level of an adviser.

barnstar2077

Hi,

Thank you for posting your story on here, it must be a tough time for you. I am not an expert by any means, but you do not mention being tricked or swindled out of your money, it sounds like you just didn't do very well. Is there a reason that you think you have grounds to complain? Were the ads really misleading?

Can I also ask you which platform you used please? Have you had any problems with gambling before?

I use Adblock in my browser which removes ads from sites and youtube, to stop the constant bombardment.

I hope that this has not depleted you of the majority of your funds. A tough lesson to learn for sure.

Reaper

More details would help but on the face of it I'm afraid you have little chance of getting any money back.

If they are a mainstream legitimate company then it sounds like you just made poor trading decisions and there is no compensation available for how badly investments turned out.

On the other hand the majority of Forex/Trading companies advertising heavily on social media are scams. In which case it was fixed - you probably made early "gains" followed by later losses they encouraged you to try to recoup by adding more money. Sadly you still aren't likely to get your money back as they are skilled at vanishing and setting up again under a new name. Prosecutions are almost non-existent and recovery of funds even less so.

eskbanker

moneyhelpuser5 wrote: »

I contacted both the FCA and the CAB, and they have said I need to complain via the Financial Ombudsman instead. Will it be worth trying this, based on the facts that a large amount of money could be deposited without little warning, and the repeated ads shown with little warning that so much money could be lost?

FOS is only available as an option for complaints about FCA-regulated businesses - was the company concerned UK-regulated?

As above, naming them would probably improve your chances of informed guidance on here and also be a more effective warning to others if that's what you're hoping to achieve....

DrSyn

1. Do you use an adblocker?

2. Did you do any research before handing over your money?

I hope you did not lose too much.

tacpot12

Sounds like they lost around £90,000.

AnotherJoe

AIUI there are two types of CFD/Forex/ETF trading platforms.
One is genuine. You really are trading with all the risks that entails at your own (extremely) high risk. So odds are very high you'll lose your money. And there's no compensation available any more than if you bought a Neil Woodford fund on a mainstream platform and lost your money or indeed placed a bet on the 330 at Kempton.

The other type is an out and out fraud that pretends to trade but actually simply takes your money. There may be a possibility to reclaim money if you used one of those.
Do you know which you were using? Were you ever able to withdraw money from the platform? If so, its the first type.

tin586

Unfortunately, on the basis of the available info, it does seem like you have fallen victim to a scam and there probably is no realistic recovery route.

If you had been trading CFDs, currency pairs, etc via an FCA-registered company, then, under ‘ESMA’ rules that came in last year, they would have had to classify you as a ‘retail’ investor and restrict your leverage and give you negative balance protection (unless you were somehow able to convince them to give you ‘professional’ status).

The other thing is (and this is not meant unkindly or to be judgemental), if you had accumulated enough cash in the first place (that led you to lose a near 6 figure sum), you surely must have had sufficient financial savvy to avoid being caught like this (?). If it’s money you in effect owe, then I don’t see how a scammer or FCA-registered firm (if you were retail) can get it out of you (my opinion; not professional advice).

As others have said, naming the firm will help you get more precise comments.

moneyhelpuser5

Hi all,

Many thanks for your replies. I actually suspected as much but I just wanted to make sure.

The company in question is "Trading 212".

Fortunately I still have full premium bonds so here's hoping fortunes change!

AnotherJoe

Unfortunately for you that seems to be a real company that really does do trades, so you dont even have the clutching at straws possibility of claiming a refund via chargeback.
So, you have no more chance of getting your money back than if you'd chased your losses on the horses and racked up bigger ones, you've lost your money with no recompense.