Going offshore to escape the CFTC

Broker Discussion Forex Brokers
4719

I received a questionable email this morning from Capital city markets. Due to recent increase in spam / junk mail, I fear my email may have been hacked.

Debit card deposits have been offline for the past ten days or so when I log into the client area / back office. But I’m wondering if this also isn’t part of the hack.

Has anyone else received a similar email from CCM broker ??? Notice there’s no advisory warning re forex trading at the bottom.

I asked if they could provide specific dates & dollar amounts of the deposits & they did.

Still… wouldn’t a problem with their debit card processor be their issue & not mine…?? The money was transferred from my account.

——>>

Dear ——-

Regretfully, we have to inform you that difficulties have arisen with the payment service provider that accepted your debit/credit card deposit on our behalf, and the funds have not been passed through to us. As a result, we have no option but request that you to contact your card issuer and dispute the deposit for non-delivery.

Since your deposit was never completed, we will need to set your account to read-only until new funds have been deposited.

If you wish to continue trading then you will need to re-deposit by bank wire or Bitcoin such that funds have been received by Capital City Markets no later than 27/10/2017.

If you do not wish to re-deposit (or fail to do so by 27/10/2017) then please be aware that your account will be suspended and any open trades closed at market on that date.

If you have made deposits into your trading account using other payment options (such as wires and BTC deposits) in addition to card deposits, please inform us as soon as possible so we can work towards a solution together.

Regards,

Capital City Markets

4720

I watched this video and have seen many on similar topics.

If I get accurate executions, and I see that this broker’s price does
not deviate from a “reference broker” such as Dukascopy, then I
know they are not giving me false pricing.

The guy starts the video stating that most of these broker details
are unlikely to affect a trader’s success or failure.

Just use a “quality” ECN/STP broker with accurate Order Entry
who makes Commission only, and you can be assured you
can’t blame your Trading Failures on the broker ! LOL

What else can I say?

hyperscalper

4721

Yes. I awoke to this same email this morning. Funds were processed and charged by my CC company so don’t see how this is our problem. Can you share their reply to your inquries? I have yet to get a response to my reply to them. Very disturbing.

4722

Thanks for the response ! Nice to know I’m not alone in this issue.

I agree. CCM is the one responsible for vetting their card processor. That’s why I’m wondering if this is a hack email & not actually from CCM.

Will you do me a favor? Will you log into the back office & click “funding (card)” & tell me if you get the pop up that states “debit card processing facilities are temporarily unavailable” (or something similar)…???

I’m just curious if you’re seeing the same thing that I’m seeing.

I have not responded to their email any further. I wanted to post here & see if I was the only one receiving this email or if there were others.

Maybe Clint will have an idea as to how we should proceed.

4723

Yes I agree.
I also think, even with oanda you can make money.
We raised the lots slightly with Oanda. So far so good.
Lots of peolpe think if there is conflict of interest you can not make money. I think you can.
:grinning:

4724

I do get the unavailable message as well.

4725

Okay, thank you. We’re definitely seeing the same thing. Only difference is you used a credit card & I used my bank debit card.

Let’s see if Clint comes in & offers some suggestions this weekend.

I’m going to start researching US based futures brokers. I’ve done some good trading over the past few months but these off shore brokers & their shenanigans are getting on my nerves. I’m considering trading currencies as futures contracts & other futures markets as well.

I won’t be surprised if Capital City markets refuses to process a withdrawal of my account balance as long as they think I owe them money. Just another good reason to not leave a large balance with a broker.

4726

Here is reply I got from CCM - seems like it’s not a hack, but I still don’t see how this falls on me to sort out with my CC company. I don’t know that CC company is going to go for it. Anyone else have thoughts?:

Dear xxxxxxx,

You, as the client, got charged almost immediately and our payment provider confirmed that. But to avoid several days/weeks worth of delays, deposits are “credited” by us to begin with - even before we receive the actual funds from your deposit.

Since we have never received the funds then please dispute all the card deposits you made to CCM and re-deposit disputed amount by bank wire transfer or bitcoin. Please let us know once you have done it.

xxxx Card deposit (xxxxx) 2017/09/15 18:34:39 Deposit USD - US Dollar xxxx
xxxx Card fee (xxxx) 2017/09/15 18:34:39 Withdrawal USD - US Dollar -xxxx

We are very sorry for the inconveniences.

—

Client Support

Capital City Markets Limited
Vantu House, 133 Santina Parade
Elluk, Port Vila, Efate
Vanuatu

t: +44-207-442-5903
e: [email protected]

4727

Thank you for posting that. I’ve been trying to get in touch with someone I know in the accounting dept at my bank but they seem to be out of the office today. I don’t think my bank is going to go for it either. Which would mean, I assume, it will be me who’s on the hook to wire them the dollar amount in question.

I agree with you, it’s not right. I never had this problem with Tallinex. And I have a difficult time believing that it takes “days / weeks” for a transaction to be processed in this day & age. We are in a global economy… banks / CC companies know that & have the technology to process those transactions quickly. This is still very suspicious to me. The earliest transaction that they are questioning for me, is dated in July. That’s absurd.

Clint, any thoughts ?

4728

wow - july! that’s crazy, mine was sept, which could almost make sense.

4729

Yep, July, August, & September. Three deposits. July is the oldest one in question. Which is ridiculous… like I said, global economy. Money can be moved almost instaneously these days. That’s why I’m very suspicious of the emails from CCM.

4730

I just received another email from Capital City Markets. It looks as tho they might have someone reading this thread. Or, others are voicing the same complaints that we are.

Again, this email does not contain their contact information & advisory warning at the bottom. Which also makes me suspicious.

This is not the “complicated situation” that they are saying it is. It is their job to to vet & do due dilligence in choosing a payment processor.

——->>>

We apologize for the inconvenience, confusion and frustration that our earlier email and card dispute request may have caused, but our number-one priority always has to be the safety of client funds.

Sadly, recent actions by the payment service provider that processed your deposit has caused us to question their integrity - forcing us to ask affected clients to dispute their transaction via their card issuer (bank/financial institution).

To do so, please reach out to your card issuer (bank/financial institution) and explain that you wish to dispute a charge due to Services not provided - you will be able to find details of affected transactions on the Funding > Ledgers page of your Client Area.

** This ONLY affects card deposits made to CCM accounts

If your card issuer has follow-up questions (or is unwilling to process the dispute) then please let us know immediately - our prime objective is the safe return of your funds, and we will do whatever is required to ensure that. Please remember that we are available 24 hours per day (UCT) from Monday to Friday, and will be extending support hours this weekend to ensure that all clients get timely responses to their questions.

We particularly wish to thank those clients who have already been in touch and were so understanding of the situation.

Here are answers to some common questions:

Q: How do I know which card(s) / transactions are affected?
A: If in doubt, please email us ([email protected]) right away - we will be able to provide any transaction details you may need, but you should be able to find the information you require by looking on the Funding > Ledgers page of your Client Area.

Q: I deposited months ago! You said the funds the funds were on my account!
A: Yes, but this is a complicated situation. Payment service providers accept payments on behalf of a merchant (i.e. CCM), but the funds charged to a card are not instantly deposited with the merchant. Instead, they are held by the payment service provider for a period of time in case of later disputes between the client and the merchant. It is perfectly normal for payment service providers to hold a large rolling reserve which merchants are forced to accept, and the perceived risk (Forex is considered high risk) determines the percentage and hold time of that rolling reserve. In order to offer faster transaction times, merchants take the word of the payment service provider that the transaction was successful and treat the payment as received before they physically have the cash in their own bank account. In the case of brokers, that involves crediting a client’s trading account and allowing trading to begin long before the broker actually receives those deposit funds.

Q: My card issuer is saying that I cannot dispute the charge because it took place more than X days ago - what should I do?
A: That time limit does not apply in cases of fraudulent activity, and we (as the merchant) are asking you to dispute the transaction due to the fraudulent activity of the payment service provider involved - ensuring that your funds are safely returned to you.

Q: My card issuer said this may take longer than a week - what should I do?
A: We would ask you to re-deposit in good time (so that funds are on your account by the 27th), but if that is not possible then please contact us urgently so we can work out a solution and try to speed up the process.

Q: I have deposited using a wire transfer AND a card - what should I do?
A: Please reach out to [email protected] so that your specific case can be reviewed and we can formulate a solution.

If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us - we appreciate your understanding and are here to help resolve this difficult situation.

Regards,

Capital City Markets

4731

@sknight1 and @foreverforex2

I’ve read your posts regarding the CCM fubar.

I have never experienced an issue like this, in which a middle-man in the funds-transfer chain is withholding (or has stolen) the funds, so I can only guess at how you might proceed going forward.

Let me start by saying that the emails you have received look authentic. They repeatedly reference the correct email address for CCM ([email protected]). I don’t think a hack has occurred here.

If I were in your situation, I would begin by contacting my bank (or credit card issuer, as the case may be). I would give the bank/issuer all the information received from CCM, and I would ask two questions: (1) is CCM handling this matter in the proper fashion, and (2) does the bank/issuer have the name and contact information of the payment processor alleged to have stolen the funds – if the bank/issuer does not have that information, I would demand it from CCM.

In the case of a deposit made by bank debit card (@sknight1), these questions will probably have to wait until Monday. In the case of a credit card deposit (@foreverforex2), the card issuer’s customer service department should be available over the weekend.

CCM’s allegation that payments are routinely delayed for weeks or months seems suspicious to me, and I would discuss this issue with my bank or card issuer, as well. Also, CCM’s statement that the relatively risky nature of the forex brokerage business is somehow a factor in all of this makes no sense to me – none of that so-called risk involves the payment processor.

Finally, I would not rush to make additional (duplicate) deposits to CCM. I, for one, would require more information, before I would be willing to continue my relationship with this broker.

Please keep us updated on this matter.

4732

Thanks for your response Clint. You’ve given me some good info to go on when I visit with my bank on Monday. I had the same thought about their comment that forex was risky when the problem is with the payment processor.

I think the whole situation may be grounds to remove them from the approved brokers list. Unless that’s already happened… it’s been a while since I’ve checked in on this thread.

4733

[quote=“sknight1, post:4732, topic:35612, full:true”]

I think the whole situation may be grounds to remove them from the approved brokers list. Unless that’s already happened… it’s been a while since I’ve checked in on this thread.[/quote]

There has been no change to CCM’s listing in Group 1.

And if a change is to be made, it will only be made after the dust has settled on this funding issue, and everyone has had a chance to weigh in on how to proceed.

The only change I would consider making unilaterally, without the advice and consent of the members, would be a “warning label” added to the CCM listing. But, that would be a little premature, at this point.

4734

That’s fair. It was just a thought I had. I wasn’t trying to push you around nor tell you what to do. :+1:t3:

4735

Evolve.Markets has BitCoin denominated accounts.

I’m pleased to report smooth withdrawals of BTC (BIT). :slight_smile:

I believe Evolve absorbs the transaction fee as well.

No problems with a payment processor !

EDIT Of course you are dealing with a somewhat volatile asset
in BTC which has recently risen and apparently stabilized at
just over $6000 / BTC as of this time…

EDIT2 I like that Evolve allows you to enable Google Authenticator
on your mobile device as a 2 factor requirement prior to any ability
to withdraw funds. Pretty secure seemingly.

hyperscalper

4736

Interesting. The Capital City Markets email stated that if funds were not wired / received by 10/27/17 that the account would be suspended. To test this statement I just tried to enter a trade & got the message “trading is disabled”. Today is the 22nd.

4737

Hello all. I received the same CCM emails on 10/20/17 and instantly thought it was a fraud. I started to research and came across this thread and read it carefully . I have made some investigations and banking institution inquires in to this truly bizarre statement from Capital City Markets .
Has anyone here gotten a grasp on this yet and or figured out what the real truth might be or how to resolve ?

4738

Martin, what did your bank have to say about the situation ? I’m still trying to get in touch with one of the head accounts at my bank but she seems to be out of the office again today.