HIBAPRESS – Rabat
In light of the increasing demand from new investors in the stock market, the Moroccan Capital Market Authority has called on the public to exercise caution and prudence and to obtain sufficient information before making any investment, warning of the risks of unlicensed investment advice and the spread of fraudulent trading platforms.
The Authority stated in a warning issued in Rabat on December 22, 2025, that it had observed a disturbing increase in illegal practices in the field of financial investment advice, as well as the increasing appearance of fake trading platforms, which poses a real threat to investors' funds and the integrity of the financial market.
The statement explained that social media has contributed to the facilitation of the spread of recommendations calling for the buying or selling of shares via the internet or through private instant messaging groups, pointing out that these recommendations may fall, even if they appear to be in good faith, within the unlicensed practice of financial investment advice, which is subject to the provisions of Law No. 19.14, which requires prior authorization by registering with the Moroccan Capital Market Authority.
The Authority affirmed that this registration constitutes a basic guarantee for the protection of investors, as it is subject to a strict legal and regulatory framework that ensures the integrity and professional competence of the advisor and reduces the risks of conflicts of interest. It also warned that some of these recommendations may hide manipulative intentions, including the "Pump and Dump" technique, which involves encouraging the public to buy financial bonds before the promoter of the recommendation sells them to make profits at the expense of other investors.
In the same context, the Moroccan Capital Market Authority drew attention to the increasing spread of trading platforms that may be fraudulent, adopting a professional appearance and promoting promises of achieving quick and high profits, and the operators may, in some cases, assume the status of market professionals in order to gain the trust of the victims.
According to the statement, these platforms operate according to a recurring method that begins with misleading advertisements, then urging an initial deposit, before displaying false profits to push investors to inject additional amounts, and then preventing withdrawals, leading to the sudden disappearance of the platform.
The Authority pointed out that some trading platforms, especially those related to gold or currencies, are not subject to its monitoring, explaining that combating fraud related to these platforms falls within the scope of general law, and not within its direct supervisory jurisdiction.
Regarding penalties, the Moroccan Capital Market Authority recalled that the unlicensed practice of investment advice, or the dissemination of false or misleading financial information, exposes its perpetrators to criminal penalties that may include imprisonment and fines.
The Authority stressed that vigilance remains the first line of defense for protecting investors, calling on the public to be cautious of promises of high profits, to verify the identity of the counterparties, and not to be carried away by the advice being circulated, especially within private messaging groups, with the necessity of referring to the official list of financial investment advisors available on the Authority's website.
Within the framework of strengthening its preventive efforts, the Authority announced its intention to establish a digital mechanism dedicated to raising awareness and educating about the risks of fraud in the field of investment, in parallel with recalling the availability of the digital portal for financial culture "Let's Understand the Capital Market", which aims to enable the public to understand the mechanisms of the financial market and the basic concepts related to investment in financial instruments.
