"Fresh look" from Fresh Forex: How Ukrainians fall for broker-scammer tricks

"Fresh look" from Fresh Forex: How Ukrainians fall for broker-scammer tricks

Another scandal erupted on social media – the owner of the Fresh Forex project sharply criticized the authorities after searches in the offices of his company, which positioned itself as a stockbroker but turned out to be yet another trap for the money of trusting Ukrainians.

Not long ago, the online portal «Obozrevatel» already described the scheme of this «broker’s» operation, after which journalists began receiving threats from unknown individuals. Now, Martynyuk’s projects (Fresh Forex is far from the entrepreneur’s only brand) face claims from both law enforcement and deceived «investors».

Journalists also managed to speak with former employees who worked for LLC «Fresh Forex Ukraine» and other «companies» whose names served as a cover for dubious business operations.

Testimonies of Former Employees

Former call center operators and «sales» managers, regretting their actions, revealed that Martynyuk’s projects operate on the same scheme – they look for people through «purchased» subscriber databases, promise high returns on investments, and literally force saving investments into «stock trades». In successful managers, the number of «clients» can count in hundreds.

After depositing funds into the «broker’s» account, the «investor» naturally never sees their deposits or profits again. In case of issues with searches or complaints, the organizers of the fraudulent business simply change offices and, if necessary, the staff. However, as former employees noted, many who realized what they were actually involved with would quit themselves. Only those willing to make a «deal with conscience» and ready to knowingly «scam» people would remain. 

As found out by the workers of another online publication, despite Martynyuk being officially registered with Fresh Forex, he has many other projects of a similar nature registered under front persons. Here are just a few – Want Trade, Want Broker, Prof Advice LLC, Omni Stock Investment. Operators and managers even had instructions to change company names during conversations if it was necessary for «convincing» clients.

«Fresh Forex» Is Far from the Only One

Another subject of the investigation was Martynyuk’s «daughter» company Omni Stock Investment, whose offices were searched in Odesa. While the company’s organizers are charged with embezzling $26,000 from investors, the actual sums of stolen «investments» may be much larger.

It is also interesting that during the searches and confiscation of equipment in the offices of the Odesa company, the investigation led to «Prof Advice», another Martynyuk organization, proving that the entire network of such LLCs actually has one leadership.

Conclusion

Fighting «companies» of dishonest brokers succeeds with varying degrees of success, as it is difficult to determine how many more fake brands are registered under front persons.

The situation is complicated by office relocations, which begin their search for victims in a new place almost immediately after searches at the old location. Perhaps the raised public outcry will improve the situation.