March 28, 2013 Investor warnings - News

Montréal - The Autorité des marchés financiers (the "AMF") and the Office de la protection du consommateur are warning Quebeckers about solicitations by Rainmaker Marketing LLC, an American company which seems to target consumers with credit problems.

In the spring of 2012, at least one Québec consumer responded to an offer from a representative of Rainmaker Marketing LLC who proposed reducing the interest rate on his credit card in return for a $500 payment.

During the weeks following this initial offer, a representative of Rainmaker Marketing LLC would offer the opportunity of investing $8,000, allowing the company to purchase a list containing the contact information of 4,000 consumers with debts to whom it would also offer a similar interest rate reduction.  The representative allegedly said that the investor would receive $100 every time one of the 4,000 consumers accepted Rainmaker's offer. According to the representative, one out of two individuals would accept the offer, which meant a potential return of $200,000 on an $8,000 investment.

A consumer wishing to accept this investment offer would sign an authorization allowing Rainmaker to charge $8,000 to his credit card. This authorization would say that the consumer had purchased eight testimonial educational packages, without mentioning any investment.

So far, at least one person in Québec has fallen victim to the scheme. That individual has received only US$238 in return and has tried to reach Rainmaker several times, without success.

Importance of being cautious
As part of Fraud Prevention Month, the AMF and the Office de la protection du consommateur remind consumers that it is important to beware of offers that are too good to be true and to use caution with respect to credit This link will open in a new window and investments.

The Autorité des marchés financiers (the AMF) is the regulatory and oversight body for Québec's financial sector.

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Information :

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