GCG Asia

Guardian Capital Corporation or GSG ASIA gives away some very pleasant first vibes. The website is designed to be accessible and user friendly, yet it cannot hide from us the ugly truth. Read on to find out.

GSG ASIA presents itself as a broker, but the only way to prove said claim is to possess a legit license. GSG ASIA says that it is registered in Zurich, and that is regulated by Switzerland’s local financial regulator FINMA.

Every broker in Switzerland must hold a banking license from FINMA in order to provide Forex and CFDs trading. To become eligible for such a license, would be brokers have to hold a capital of at least 20 million CHF. Next, Swiss brokers must sing the Swiss Banks and Securities Dealers Agreement in order to continue with their application for a legitimate regulation. This agreement protects all customers against brokers’ insolvency of up to 100 000 CHF. It’s obvious that acquiring a license in Switzerland is no easy endeavor, one that can only be compared to the severity of US regulation.

With everything said, after our initial check of GSG ASIA in FINMA’s registry, we can conclude that this broker is UNREGULATED, thus exposing anyone who invests in it to a risk of losing all deposited funds.

If one wishes to trade with a Swiss broker we strongly advise to check for a license from FINMA or any of the other regulatory entities in the country, including the Swiss Bankers Association, the Swiss Federal Department of Finance, and the Swiss Federal Banking Commission, before making any investment whatsoever. Outside Switzerland, we urge traders to trade with regulated brokers under the gaze of such agencies as the FCA which not only enforces a strict set of rules and demands detailed reports on company activities, but also includes a compensation fund of up to £85 000 for victimized traders resulting from insolvent brokers.

We would like to provide you with a EUR/USD spread, but we are very limited by the broker’s capacity for service providing. We could not register since there is nowhere to do so, making the trading platform useless. There are no live quotes anywhere to indicate the cost of trading.

Since Switzerland is not in the European Union ESMA has no authority, thus the broker can offer leverages as high as 1:200. However, GSG ASIA seems to offer only a leverage of 1:10:

Again, information is scarce further increasing our distrust with the broker.

Assets for trading are as follows: Forex Pairs, Energies, Precious Metals and Crypto Currencies. However, since we were unable to register, we cannot be for certain if these instruments are valid.

The broker is available in English and Chinese. For a country like Switzerland where there are 3 major languages being spoken (French, German, Italian) the inclusion of only two languages is a clear sign of how far-fetched this broker is.

GSG ASIA LOGIN

The brokerage has included the MT4 platform. However, in good old unregulated broker style, the platform is simply inaccessible. The install process for the platform was easy enough, but without a proper registration process, we were unable to login to the MT4, thus leaving us in front of a brick wall.

GSG ASIA MINIMUM DEPOSIT

The minimum deposit is unknown to us. Without a proper registration, one is limited to guess at the amount. There is no info whatsoever concerning deposits.

The closest thing we got to funding methods are a bunch of logos of payment methods on the HomePage:

Due to the broker’s lack of any regulation, we advice against depositing any amount whatsoever. If traders wish to invest in forex, they will find that any FCA/CySEC regulated broker will surely do. These agencies are at the top of their game, demanding a strict conduct from brokers, and requiring regular reports on their activities.

DON’T PROVIDE YOUR CREDIT CARD CVV CODE

In the Terms and Policy section the broker has left out these pivotal details, meaning that at some point they might request these details from you. The three digit CVV code is essential to making purchases or completing transactions online. By handing this info to someone claiming to be a broker, your are exposing your savings to the biggest risk of all!

DON’T PROVIDE ACCESS TO YOUR COMPUTER AND BANK ACCOUNT VIA ANYDESK OR TEAMVIEWER

Be sure to never give AnyDesk or TeamViewer access to your PC to unverified agents. These 2 platforms allow for your PC to be taken over by a second party, often times for help or guidance, but in the case of these brokers for the sole purpose of looting your bank account(s) and personal information. However, in order to do so your consent is needed, and this is the only thing standing in the scammers’ way.

GSG ASIA WITHDRAWAL TIME AND FEES

As is with the deposits, the broker has chosen to conceal any information concerning withdrawals, entailing in our inability to give you a minimum withdrawal amount nor any payment process times.

There is no mention of withdrawal fees.

ADDITIONAL FEES AND TAXES

However, the lack of fees does not nullify the fact that incoming and hidden charges might pop up at any time, seeing as this broker is unregulated. Furthermore, once you request a withdrawal, probably due to your suspicions being realized, the broker will most certainly deny your appeal. This denial is followed by a well thought of justification. Either they will find a loophole in the T/C that upholds their right to keep your deposit, or they will ensure you that now is the worst time for withdrawals, for the market will very soon thrust upwards and multiply your initial investment by unrealistic numbers.

ACCOUNT VERIFICATION

If a broker is unlicensed, never give you ID and personal details to it, because the broker will use these details against you once you file for a charge back. Furthermore, any allegation held against the brokerage will be easily refuted if they have in their possession a copy of your ID and proof of address.

We are positive that this so called broker will not return your funds; the evidence we have laid out before you work in sync against it. The sound thing to do is to direct your attention and investment to a broker that is actually regulated by a Swiss financial regulator like FINMA which is the European equivalent of the NFA in the US.

HOW TO RECOVER

Filing for a charge back is the best advice we could give you. Immediately contact your bank or credit card company and lay out the circumstances.

If you have given away your credit card details including the CVV code to the “broker” you should cancel it ASAP and check with your bank to see the damage inflicted.

At some point or another you might stumble upon a “recovery” agent or agency that promises to retrieve all your money back. This sounds all too good to be true, and that’s because it isn’t. Before proceeding with the recovery they will ask a payment for their services. If you chose to indulge them, they will disappear with the money without a hint of remorse.

The last line of defense for these indecent folk is more like a desperate cry: often times they will comment on reviews and cite the whole ordeal as a conspiracy initiated by competitive brokers against them; at times even claiming that reviewers are anything but objective, and that no one writes good reviews. The absurdities are limitless!

BOTTOM LINE

Things very quickly escalated for GSG ASIA. This is one of the worst examples of a broker with a complete disregard for delivering pivotal funding/account/platform information. Seeing this should immediately compel you to turn around. Add to that the lack of regulation, and what we have is one brokerage that is best left untouched.