The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) alerts the financial services community and the public to a scam in which the DFSA is impersonated on an online trading platform called "Sharkix”.

Sharkix’s website states that:

• they are supervised and regulated by the DFSA; and
• their “investment dealer license number is A541455”.

A person named Valentin Alexandrovich Vazhnov, identifying himself as a trader on the Sharkix platform, contacts victims of the scam through WhatsApp and helps them create accounts to trade on the Sharkix platform.

This person:

• asks victims to pay him 20% of any investment profits made; and
• persuades victims to take out personal loans to increase their investments.

When the victims ask to withdraw funds from their Sharkix accounts, Mr Vazhnov threatens to take legal action and to close their accounts.

The DFSA informs you that:

• neither Sharkix nor Mr Vazhnov are, or have ever been, authorised by the DFSA;
• neither Sharkix nor Mr Vazhnov are located in the DIFC or registered by the DIFC Authority;
• the investment dealer licence number A541455 is not a valid licence number issued by the DFSA; and
• Sharkix has fraudulently used the DFSA’s name and logo without permission.

The DFSA strongly advises you not to respond to any communications regarding this scam, and under no circumstances should you send or give any money to any party connected to the scam.

The DFSA has a page on its website dedicated to alerts which has issued about scams.  All alerts issued by the DFSA may be accessed by going to Alerts

The DFSA has also issued warnings and guidance about the common types of scams perpetrated on consumers. For more information on these scams, please go to How to avoid being scammed

The DFSA encourages consumers to refer to the list of regulated Firms and Authorised Individuals licensed by the DFSA that is available on the DFSA's Public Register

If you have any concerns about the authenticity of any correspondence or documents that purport to be issued by the DIFC, DFSA or a DFSA-regulated Firm, you should direct your concerns to the DIFC on Tel: +971 4 362 2222 and to the DFSA via the DFSA Complaints function on Complaints