Investment scams using the names of real companies: how to spot them

Updated on November 7, 2026 · 6 min read

In short: if you see an ad for an “investment platform” carrying the name of a company you know, such as Mercado Libre, CaixaBank or SoftBank, the chances are that the real company has nothing to do with it. It is impersonation: scammers borrow the name, and often the logo, of a well-known brand precisely because you already trust it. Between 26 October and 4 November 2026 we recorded 13 fraudulent platforms using the name of a real company, brand or institution, in 22 ads across 8 countries.

Why it works

A made-up name like Lacrecencia means nothing to anyone, which is why scammers change it every few days (we explain this in Why scam investment platforms change their name). A real name does the opposite job: victims recognise the brand, associate it with years of good experience and lower their guard. Add the company’s founder or a head of government to the ad and the story seems complete.

The impersonated companies are victims of this fraud, just like the people who lose their money. They have not launched these products, they do not promote them and they do not receive the money that is deposited.

What we found

In every case, the real company or institution is unconnected to the platform.

Argentina: Mercado Libre, the government and YPF

Argentina accounts for 4 of the 13 platforms. Two use the Mercado Libre name: Mercado Libre, with 3 ads between 26 and 29 October featuring President Javier Milei and the company’s founder, Marcos Galperin, and MercadoLibre Invest, featuring Economy Minister Luis Caputo. The Argentine fact-checker Chequeado had already warned about sites using Galperin’s image to promote an “investment platform” (in Spanish).

The other two go a step further. MiArgentina takes the name of Mi Argentina, the government’s official app for public services, and Argentina LNG uses the name of YPF’s liquefied natural gas project, with the image of journalist Carlos Pagni. It is a familiar pattern: Chequeado has documented fake YPF investments using AI-generated celebrity videos and a doctored video in which government spokesman Manuel Adorni appeared to promote a “government investment platform with YPF”. Neither the government nor YPF offers investment platforms through ads.

Colombia: Nu and the big bankers

In Colombia, Aurora NUinvest works the Nu brand of the digital lender Nubank into its name, in 3 ads between 28 October and 3 November. Nexo IA uses the name of Nexo, a real crypto company, and 3G Capital copies that of 3G Capital, a real investment firm. None of these companies has any link to the platforms. What stands out is the cast: the bankers Luis Carlos Sarmiento Angulo and Jaime Gilinski, Nu’s founder David Vélez, former Ecopetrol chief executive Ricardo Roa and Colombia’s president, Abelardo de la Espriella. None of them promotes these platforms.

Spain, Switzerland, France, Canada, Singapore and Japan

• Spain. CaixaRendimiento mimics the CaixaBank name and uses the image of Isidro Fainé, chairman of the “la Caixa” Foundation, in 3 ads between 30 October and 4 November. We found 7 domains imitating its name.
• Switzerland. Spuhler Capital uses the surname of businessman Peter Spuhler and his image at the same time, in 4 ads between 27 and 30 October. He has nothing to do with the platform.
• France. NaPoleonX reproduces, with a single capital letter of difference, the name of NapoleonX, a real crypto company that has no connection to the platform.
• Canada. O’Shares Invest uses the O’Shares name alongside the image of its founder, Kevin O’Leary.
• Singapore. Temasek Bitfundix Prime uses the name of Temasek, Singapore’s state-owned investment company, which has published an alert about trading platforms impersonating it.
• Japan. SoftBank Invest presents itself under the SoftBank name, with no celebrity in the ad: the brand is enough.

How to check

1. Type the official website address yourself. Do not click the ad or the link you were sent: type the company’s address into your browser or open its official app. If the “new investment product” is not there, it does not exist.
2. Look closely at the address. Scammers register domains that resemble the real name, with an extra letter or an added word (invest, capital, pro).
3. Check the firm on the regulator’s register: the FCA in the UK, the SEC and FINRA in the US, the CSA in Canada. We explain how in How to check if a broker is regulated. A famous brand is not a licence.
4. Be suspicious of a brand that is not in that business. An online marketplace like Mercado Libre, an oil company like YPF or a group like SoftBank does not sell trading platforms through ads featuring celebrities.
5. If a celebrity is promising returns, it is a scam. More in Celebrity investment scams.

If you have already paid

Do not send any more money, even if you are asked for a “fee” to release your profits, and do not install remote-access software. Keep screenshots of the ad, the website and your payments, and follow our victim guide as soon as possible. You can also alert the impersonated company through its official channels: it helps them get the ads taken down.

Methodology

We analysed the platforms our team recorded in ads between 26 October and 4 November 2026 and selected those whose name used that of a real company, brand, institution or person. For each one we give the number of ads, the dates, the celebrities featured and the domains imitating its name, found through searches and certificate monitoring. All figures are minimums. A real company’s mention in this article means its name was impersonated, not that it has any connection to the platform.