The Securities and Exchange Commission warned investors from investing in marketing firm Secret2Success which is not authorized to solicit investments from the public.
The SEC in an advisory posted on its website said while S2S was registered with the corporate corporate regulator, it did not secure a license as required by the Securities Regulation Code to sell securities or entice the public to invest in online or through the internet.
S2S headed by Rafael Garcia de Andres, according to the information gathered by the SEC, allegedly invited people to enroll in its Online Academy by paying P250 that would entitle enrollees several benefits.
S2S also promises members income opportunities through referral commissions where a member who recruits another prospective member will earn P40 for every referral to the Online Academy and P80 per for group sales match bonus if a member matches two new recruits
The maximum earnings for 12 pairs per day per member is P960.00 or P28,800 a month.
For a maximum account of 31 per member, the a member is entitled to as much as P892,800 in commission a month.
The SEC said S2S also started to promote the use of bitcoins as platform for the investment and/or distribution of commission/bonus.
“The public is hereby warned that such investment schemes whether with the use of bitcoins or money are considered as securities subject to the regulatory authority of this Commission,” SEC said.
“The recruitment of investor members under the guise of sponsoring a person into the system is likewise considered a form of investment solicitation or a sale of securities. The offering or sale of securities to the public without a permit or license from the Commission is a violation of Section 8.1 of the Securities Regulation Code,” it added.