OneCoin Claims Are ‘False and Misleading,’ Warns Belgium

Belgium has issued a formal warning against OneCoin, the suspected ponzi scheme, which has already received criticism from throughout the cryptocurrency community.

Also read: The Halving Not Affecting Bitcoin Price or Hashrate, for Now

OneCoin Claims ‘False,’ Says Belgium Watchdog

In a release Friday, the country’s Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) stated that neither OneCoin nor its promoters “have been recognized or authorized” and that both parties’ claims “are false and misleading.”

“The Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) warns the public that neither OneCoin nor the persons promoting OneCoin have been recognized or authorized by the FSMA,” it states.

OneCoin has attracted increasing negative publicity as its organizers seek to expand its presence to new markets. The organizers themselves, their scheme and claims have been revealed as likely fraudulent due to a lack of evidence of funds and other unexplained practices.

For further information about the dangers associated with OneCoin, see this author’s previous report from May 2015 as well as Bitcoin.com’s recent exposé.

Belgium’s official warning explicitly highlights the activities of presumed OneCoin representatives on social media, a practice which has become commonplace for those seeking to defend the scheme.

The FSMA release states:

“Hence the claims made public by Mr Laurent Louis’ on his Facebook page, namely, that the FSMA  had stated that it “n’avait rien trouvé à redire sur le OneCoin” (unofficial English translation, “ that it had nothing to say about OneCoin”) and that “pour la FSMA, le OneCoin ne pose aucun problème et n’est nullement illégal ni une arnaque” (unofficial English translation, “for the FSMA, OneCoin does not pose any problems and is neither illegal nor a fraud”) are false and misleading. These claims suggest or imply that the operations in OneCoin are carried out under conditions laid down by the laws and regulations which the FSMA enforces, whereas in fact these laws and regulations do not apply to such operations.”

The FSMA notes however that there is no official legislation, which can be enforced to stop the activities, as Belgium currently does not have hard-and-fast rules governing virtual currencies.

The authority also directs the public to head previous warnings on “risks” associated with virtual currency use in general, which it made in tandem with the National Bank of Belgium.

Mounting International Scrutiny

Meanwhile, Bangladesh has arrested “two OneCoin investors” on counterterrorism charges, Behindmlm.com reports.

Cited is an article in local news outlet Bangla Tribune, which states “two members of an online MLM fraud gang,” namely Nazrul Islam Mamun and Zahirul Islam Zahir, had been arrested in Dhaka on allegations of fraud. OneCoin was listed as one of several websites, which led to the charges.

Police stated that “necessary measures are being taken to stop these sites,” the publication further reports, but no further details were given.

Elsewhere, China has accused OneCoin of “allegedly engaging in illegal pyramid schemes,” CBN Global reports, while Swedish police have been investigating the operation since January after being reported by the country’s Gaming Board.

What do you think about OneCoin’s claims and governmental criticism? Let us know in the comments section below!

Images courtesy of net2net.com and learnvest.com, consiliumglobalbusinessadvisors.com, dev.thefumble.com

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