October 1, 2025
DHAKA – The fraudsters’ strategy is simple: lure stock investors with ads promising quick returns on Facebook or Instagram, bolster credibility of the offer using fake experts in WhatsApp groups. Once the investor is hooked, ask them to register on fake websites and invest through bKash or Nagad.
This is how scammers have been duping thousands of people using social media platforms and mobile financial services (MFS), a month-long sting operation by Dismislab has exposed.
The investigative team joined multiple WhatsApp groups posing as potential investors to follow the scam firsthand. They found at least 20 active groups claiming to represent legitimate brokerage firms, including City Brokerage Limited (CBL) and BRAC EPL Stock Brokerage. Each group guided users through a carefully choreographed process designed to make the operation appear legitimate.
“In September alone, hundreds of advertisements were running from at least 15 Facebook pages, all aimed at drawing users into newly created WhatsApp groups. At least 20 such groups have been identified, with their combined membership exceeding 3,000,” states the report published yesterday by the independent fact-checking and media research platform.
In the CBL-branded group, members were directed to download a fake Android app that simulated real trading activity. In the BRAC group, they were sent to a fake website that mirrored the branding of the real firm.
Users were then instructed to transfer money directly to personal accounts via MFS or banks, bypassing licensed brokerage channels. Some of the ads even used the names and images of prominent personalities, including Zahid Hussain, former lead economist at the World Bank’s Dhaka office, to enhance credibility.
Officials from the affected brokerage firms told Dismislab they had alerted both the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) about the scam.
The exposé comes just weeks after the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the BSEC issued warnings against such fraudsters. The group has been using the DSE name, logo, and even its official address to appear credible before approaching people on WhatsApp and other platforms, they warned.
The regulator reminded investors that publishing market advice without registration is illegal under the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (Research Analyst) Rules, 2013.
Similar scams have previously been reported in India, where social media, messaging platforms, and fake websites were used to lure ordinary users with promises of high returns from the stock market, ultimately defrauding them of millions of rupees.