Police complete probe into alleged foreign currency trading firms

KUALA LUMPUR: Police have completed their investigations into a firm purportedly trading in foreign currency that ran into troubled waters in October last year leaving over 17,000 of its investors in the lurch.
Police investigators have also submitted their findings to the Attorney-General's Chambers last month.
A task force from the Kuala Lumpur commercial crimes investigations department undertaking the case had called up the relevant parties for questioning since commencing the probe late November last year.
Sources revealed that among those police had called up for questioning were the four directors of VenusFX, including a Datuk and their investment brokers who had promoted the scheme to the public.
Also grilled by police investigators were directors of another company run by a Datuk Seri and his wife, who is also a Datuk.
This company had ventured into a partnership with foreign currency trading firm in June last year and received deposits of RM7.2 million from the company and its investors.
The city CCID had received nine police reports lodged against the operators of the scheme and opened three investigations on the company for cheating.
It is learnt that the AG's Chambers is in the midst of examining the investigation papers that were filed in by police about two weeks ago.
It is also believed that Bank Negara is carrying out a separate probe on both firms for illegal deposit-taking.
Police are tight-lipped on the progress of investigations.
Thousands of investors who participated in the scheme investing between RM100 and several hundred thousand ringgit are in a quandary after the operations of the company went downhill in October last year.
theSun learnt that thousands were drawn to the scheme after seeing their friends and family members reaping a fortune - tripling their investments within just months since the inception of the company late 2015.
It later turned out that the company was not involved in foreign currency trading but was allegedly running a pyramid or Ponzi-like operation.
On Sunday, former MIC treasurer-general Datuk R. Ramanan who spoke to over 1,500 investors in a gathering here, alleged that the company's victims were duped into believing they were dealing with a foreign currency investment company.
"The four directors who formed the company, together with their master investment broker had lured the thousands of investors, most of them Indians, to part with their hard-earned money. I hope victims realise now that this is not a forex investment company but a pyramid scheme." he said at the HGH private hall in Sentul in a two-hour speech.
He said in June last year, another company run by the Datuk Seri and his wife made a business proposition to the owners of the forex company offering to legalise their operations by obtaining a banking license through their "connections" in the government further compounded issues the company faced.
The couple had allegedly received RM7.2 million from investors which were re-directed to their company following an agreement to the business proposal.
Ramanan said while RM5 million was returned by the couple to the forex company following a legal demand, the balance remains with the Datuk Seri.