Investment scams
New Zealand’s Financial Markets Authority ("FMA") has issued a communication on 6th October, 2025, about “pump and dump” scams involving overseas listed companies and would like to remind the public to remain vigilant and be wary of strangers/imposters offering stock recommendations or online chat groups discussing coordinated share purchases.
A “pump and dump” scam is a form of stock market manipulation where fraudsters would artificially inflate the price of a company’s shares (“pumping”) by spreading false positive news about a company, and/or creating an appearance of trading activity in order to induce others to buy the shares. As the unwitting victims buy up the shares, the share price rises. When the stock is liquid, the fraudsters sell their shares in the company quickly ("dumping"), especially while the share price is up, and then stop all activities. With the absence of manipulation, the share price then plunges, resulting in a sharp loss/devaluation for the stock.
The scammers may also tell victims that they are entitled to compensation or reimbursement. This is a recovery scam attempting to harvest victims’ personal information and/or extract further funds.
To avoid falling prey to these scams, be wary of stock tips provided by people you befriended online. Stay vigilant and exercise the necessary precautions to protect yourself. The Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013 prohibits insider trading.
For more on "pump and dump" scams, please visit the FMA’s website. We have included some related articles below so you may familiarise yourself with, and be alert of, investment scams: https://www.fma.govt.nz/library/warnings-and-alerts/suspected-pump-and-dump-schemes/ https://www.fma.govt.nz/library/warnings-and-alerts/imposter-facebook-pages/ https://www.ic3.gov/PSA/2025/PSA250703 https://www.fma.govt.nz/library/articles/market-manipulation/
If you suspect you have been targeted by an investment/financial scam, please contact the FMA via https://www.fma.govt.nz/scams/report-a-scam/
Stocks of small market caps ("Penny Stocks") are frequently used as vehicles for scams and market manipulations due to several reasons, including their generally lower prices and less stringent listing requirements. You should be wary of advertisements, unsolicited e-mails, newsletters, blog posts, or promotional reports that emphasise the potential for large profits in Penny Stocks. These materials can often be used to manipulate or "pump up" the price of Penny Stocks before the promoter engages in selling a large volume of shares. Therefore, we strongly encourage you to do your own due diligence with respect to any Penny Stock company you intend to invest/trade in and not rely on any outside promotional reports or newsletters. In case of any doubts concerning Penny Stocks, you should seek professional advice.
Tiger Fintech (NZ) Limited and its parent company Tiger Brokers (NZ) Limited do not provide financial advice. You may refer to FMA's guideline to find or verify a licensed financial adviser: https://www.fma.govt.nz/consumer/getting-advice/finding-an-adviser/
Please review our Disclosures, including the Penny Stock Trading Risk Disclosure, and consider whether acquiring or continuing to hold financial products is suitable for you before making investment decisions.
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Impersonation scams
We have been made aware of sustained impersonation scams targeting customers of banks and financial institutions, including firms like Tiger Fintech (NZ) Limited (“Tiger Brokers”).
These scams often involve fraudulent SMS, iMessage, or RCS messages falsely claiming to be from "Tiger Securities" or "Tiger Brokers", and may include links to fake websites. These are not legitimate Tiger Brokers sites, and clicking these links may compromise your personal information, account credentials, or funds.
🛑 How the Scam Works
Fraudsters are:
Impersonating a bank and financial institution like us, via mobile messages that falsely claim your account has been suspended or accessed.
Sending urgent prompts to click a malicious link or reply to “reactivate” your account.
Creating fake websites that mimic our login or customer support portals.
🔐 What Tiger Brokers Will Never Do
We will never:
Ask for your password, 2FA code, or personal information by text message.
Send you login links via SMS, RCS, or messaging apps like WhatsApp or Telegram.
Urge you to transfer money to a “safe account” or ask for remote access to your device.
All official Tiger Brokers communications will come from verified company channels — not third-party numbers or unsecured web domains.
✅ How to Protect Yourself
Do not click on any suspicious links in messages or emails claiming to be from Tiger Brokers.
Do not reply to such messages — even if they look urgent or use official-sounding language.
Use only our official app or website: https://www.tigerbrokers.nz
Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) on your Tiger account and email.
Report suspicious messages to us directly.
If You’re Unsure
If you’re ever in doubt, do not engage with the message. Instead:
Contact us directly via our official app or Client Service Centre.
Forward any suspicious message to clientservices@tigerbrokers.nz.
Check the latest advisories on our website or social media channels.
Your financial safety is our top priority. Stay alert, stay informed, and when in doubt — verify with us directly.
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This page does not purport to disclose or discuss all risks and other significant aspects of scams. In light of the risks associated with trading products made available to you, you should undertake such transactions only if you understand the nature of the transactions you are entering into and the extent of your exposure to all risks. You should therefore consult your own legal, tax, and financial advisers before entering into any particular transaction. The availability of any product or service made to you does not constitute a TFNZ recommendation or conclusion that the product or service is appropriate for you. You are responsible for familiarising yourself with the products upon which you trade and for determining when to place orders, how you wish to direct those orders, what types of orders to use, etc.