The Philippines Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a public warning against 28 Facebook pages that are posing as legitimate lending companies to operate advance-fee loan scams.

According to the SEC, these unlicensed entities lure borrowers into paying advance fees or deposits, often promising to include this payment in the loan proceeds.

However, the scammers never release the loan. In some cases, the scammers claim they sent the money to the wrong account and demand a “penalty” before they will process the supposed loan.

To appear legitimate, the fraudulent operators present falsified documents claiming registration with the SEC, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the Bureau of Internal Revenue, and other government agencies.

The SEC also noted that scammers often move their victims from Facebook Messenger to Telegram and may include fake borrowers in group chats to make the operation look credible.

Many of the flagged pages misuse the names of well-known financial institutions.

The list includes entities calling themselves Gotyme Fast Cash Lending Inc., MLhuillier TrustFirst Lending Inc., Cebuana Quick Release Loan, and Lhuillier Cash Support Finance, among others.

“The public is reminded to avoid transacting with the companies or individuals behind these Facebook pages as they are not authorised or licensed to offer, process or grant loans through any platform,” the commission said.

The SEC urged the public to verify the legitimacy of any lending or financing company through its online database before engaging in any loan transaction.

Featured image by MrDm via Freepik.