Nigerians, Beware of Facebook Posts Promising to Double Your Money Through Access Capital Investment

15 August 2023
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Muktar Balogun

IN SHORT: There is no proof that an investment platform known as Access Capital is linked to Access Bank or an inactive registered company by a similar name. All signs point to it being a scam and Facebook posts promoting it in Nigeria should be ignored.

A Facebook account is promoting a platform called Access Capital Investment and says it is not a scam.

In a post, dated 6 August 2023, the account says: "A big congratulations to me a friend of mine just introduced me to a platform called access capital investment I was thinking It was a scam because everywhere is full of scam in the country."

It also says: "So I chat the admin on WhatsApp he explain everything to me that if I invest I'm going to get my double payment back due to his advice and encouragement I Give It a trial and this afternoon I was credited double of my investments."

The text is accompanied by a screenshot of a message showing funds deposited into the user's account.

The post includes a WhatsApp link where interested users can send messages.

We found similar posts here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

Africa Check has exposed several Facebook accounts falsely claiming to offer investment opportunities to Nigerians.

But is the Access Capital Investment platform legit? We checked.

Signs of a scam, despite assurances

The Facebook posts offer users the chance to double their investment within minutes.

In a tweet, Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crime Commission warned the public against investing in businesses that offered unrealistic returns in a short period of time. This kind of a business is not sustainable.

The post also asks users to send messages to the WhatsApp link attached. This is one of the methods used by fraudsters to obtain the user's personal or banking details.

Searching for the platform's name on Nigeria's business register brings up a business named Access Capital Investment Limited. It was registered in 1989, but is now inactive.

However, none of the posts mention "Access Capital Investment Limited" or allude to "Access Capital Investment Platform" being a company that existed in the late 1980s and has now resumed operations in Nigeria.

There is no proof that the inactive company is in any way linked to the investment platform named in the Facebook posts in question.

No links to Access Bank

Nigerians might mistake the investment platform as an affiliate of the popular Access Bank.

But in 2022, Access Bank distanced itself from the platform and brought this to the attention of several agencies, including the Nigeria Exchange, according to news site the Cable.

The bank's statement reads in part: "The management of Access Bank Plc and its subsidiaries wish to inform the public that our attention has been drawn to an online investment entity known and described as 'Access Capital Investment Platform' which has been soliciting members of the public to invest into its Access Capital Investment products promising mouth-watering returns on investment.

"By this disclaimer, Access Bank Plc wishes to dissociate itself, affiliates, subsidiaries and/or proxies from the activities, contract, claims or business engagements of Access Capital Investment Platform."

Africa Check has previously investigated similar false investment schemes here, here, here and here.

To help protect yourself against online scams, read our guide to spotting investment scams on Facebook.

Read the original story, with links and other resources.
Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. Twitter @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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