The AMF warns the public against false investment tips concerning US companies

Th

e perpetrators of the scam expect gullible investors to react to the mass emailing of investment advice

by buying the shares and "pumping up" the price. Once the price has reached the desired level, the

scheme's promoters sell their shares at a gain. Thereafter, with no further information available, the price

drops back to its initial level and the victims of the scam find themselves holding shares on which they

have made a substantial capital loss.

To set the scheme in motion, the fraudsters sometimes start out by selling the shares to each other in

order to give the impression that the market is truly active.

The scam sometimes has a follow-up. Adopting a new identity, the fraudsters contact investors who

acquired the shares in good faith and offer to exchange them for shares in reputable listed companies or

for secured bonds. They then ask for an administrative fee to be paid upfront. Naturally, the shares are

never exchanged and the upfront fee vanishes.