Blessings Kadewere:
The Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) has cautioned members of the public to desist from participating in crypto currency or assets trading as it does not regulate the sector.
This follows a recent incident where a number of Malawians fell victim to an online scam and lost significant sums of money in the process.
One of the victims, who did not want to be named, said they had placed over K400,000 in an online account in anticipation that it would be doubled every fortnight.
“I just realised that I was no longer able to access my account. A week has passed and now even their website cannot be tressed. There is no individual and physical address of the dealer that we can pursue legal proceedings against,” the victim said.
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Similar narrations have been making rounds on social media, with another victim, purportedly a college student, claiming to have lost tuition money they invested in such platforms.
In an interview, RBM spokesperson Mark Lungu said the victims can only report such matters to law enforcement agencies such as the Malawi Police Service, stressing that such scammers are not licenced by the Registrar of Financial Institutions.
“Since the institutions are not registered as financial entities in Malawi, this becomes a criminal matter and there are relevant authorities and law enforcement agencies such as the Malawi Police Service to conduct criminal investigations and take necessary action.
“Currently, the government is working on a policy around crypto assets and we hope that, once the policy position is pronounced, the necessary legal instruments will be promulgated to guide the market,” Lungu said.
