‘Convinced Over Phone', Indians Lose Millions As Dubai Firm Vanishes: ‘Garbage Bag, Mop Remain'
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A Dubai-based broking firm has vanished overnight with millions of investors' funds.
A brokerage firm with headquarters in Dubai disappeared overnight, taking millions of dirhams in investor funds with it. A black garbage bag and a mop in a bucket are the only things left outside suite 302 of the Capital Golden Tower in Dubai's Business Bay. A report in The Khaleej Times claims that Gulf First Commercial Brokers, which occupied the space only a few weeks ago, has since vanished. Up until last month, Gulf First employed about 40 people who were dispersed between suites 302 and 305 of the Capital Golden Tower in the central business centre of Dubai. They were responsible for cold phoning prospective investors and promoting foreign exchange investments.
Both suites are currently empty. The floors are covered in dust, and phone wires have been torn out. 'They returned the keys, cleared everything out, and left like they were in a hurry," the publication quoted a security guard at Capital Golden Tower as saying. 'Now we have people coming daily asking about them," he added.
Reportedly, Kerala expats Mohammad and Fayaz Poyyl invested $75,000 with Gulf First Commercial Bankers.
'I came here looking for answers, but there's nothing, no one. Just empty offices. We called every number, but no one responded. It's like they never existed," Fayaz told The Khaleej Times.
The Kerala expats were influenced to part with their hard-earned money via phone calls. 'My relationship manager convinced me to make an initial deposit of $1,000. Over time, I was pressured into adding more funds, lured by the illusion of smooth trading and early profits," said Fayaz.
According to another victim of the scam, who lost $230,000, he was paired with a relationship manager who conversed with him in Kannada. 'The platform showed small profits at first, and I even withdrew some money, just enough to build trust," the investor told The Khaleej Times. 'Then the pressure started. They blocked withdrawals and pushed me toward riskier trades while demanding more deposits," he added.
Meanwhile, an Indian investor named Sanjiv claimed that Gulf First Commercial Brokers aggressively encouraged customers to make investments via the unregulated internet portal Sigma-One Capital. 'They guaranteed safe returns," said Sanjiv, who now feels remorse for investing his life's wealth in the plan.
In addition, police have launched a complaint against both companies and confirmed that Sigma-One Capital does not have Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) or Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) approval.
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