{"id":45400,"date":"2020-10-14T15:01:05","date_gmt":"2020-10-14T07:01:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.imoney.my\/articles\/?p=45400"},"modified":"2021-09-09T14:38:26","modified_gmt":"2021-09-09T06:38:26","slug":"advice-licensed-advisor-securities-commission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.imoney.my\/articles\/advice-licensed-advisor-securities-commission","title":{"rendered":"Are You Getting Investment Advice From A Licensed Advisor?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The importance of investing for passive income cannot be emphasised enough. For Malaysians, this has become more of a reality; with the younger generation now understanding how financial systems can make their money work for them.<\/p>\n

There has been a 30% increase<\/a> in new local stock trading accounts opening in May this year compared to the same period last year. Retail investors activity during the period also showed a 607% increase year on year.<\/p>\n

The growing interest in investment among Malaysians is great news but it comes with greater risks of scams too. A recent survey<\/a> had also placed Malaysia among the top 20 nations affected by scam calls. In the first half of 2020, the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) had already issued several warnings on an increase in clone firms<\/a> and unlicensed investment schemes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This year, the SC\u2019s InvestSmart\u00ae Fest is paying special attention to increasing awareness among investors so they can avoid falling prey to these scams and illegal investment schemes.<\/p>\n

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We have all come across these self-styled \u2018investment gurus<\/a>\u2019 on the internet who get their victims to send money in exchange for advice and investment tips without properly checking first. So, it\u2019s important to know who you can ask and to learn how you can avoid falling prey to scams.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Who is allowed to give investment advice?<\/span><\/h2>\n

By law, not everyone is allowed to give investment advice. In Malaysia, it\u2019s a highly regulated profession under the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007<\/a> (CMSA). Basically, those that want to give investment advice (that is providing reports, advice or analysis on securities) must first be registered and licensed with the SC.<\/p>\n

Whether your advisor provides formal analyst reports or shares investment tips on Facebook, all forms of investment advice are covered under Malaysian law outlined in the CMSA and are overseen by the SC.<\/p>\n

All the following types of financial advice require a license:<\/p>\n