AdvantaFX.com Review

SCAM
2.275 • 4 REVIEWS
Out of business
Updated: Apr 13, 2022
SCAM CONFIRMATION

April 2018: Based on the charges filed against this company and its owner by the CFTC, the FPA sees no choice but to consider Advanta FX to be a scam.

SCAM CONFIRMATION
2018-04-25:  The CFTC has filed charges for fraud and misappropriation of client funds against Michael Salerno and his companies, Black Diamond Forex LP, BDF Trading LP, and AdvantaFX.  CLICK HERE to confirm.
Website is down. One more scam company is out of business.
AdvantaFX.com
SCAM
SCAM
2.275 • 4 REVIEWS

Recent User Reviews of AdvantaFX.com

F
FraudFighter
USA,
May 5, 2018,
Guest

Stay away please!

Nothing good to say about this company. Please stay away, it is run by a fraudster. He is facing a legal action with CFTC now for cheating above 150 prospective traders. His aim is to take your money for living.
S
scalptrader2017
USA,
Apr 27, 2018,
Registered user

You were saying, GipperPipper?

https://cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/7718-18
April 25, 2018

CFTC Charges Pennsylvania Resident Michael Salerno and his Entities with Solicitation Fraud and Misappropriation in Connection with Retail Forex Transactions in Violation of the Commodity Exchange Act
Federal Court Order Freezes Assets and Protects Books and Records of Defendants and Relief Defendants
Washington DC - The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed a civil enforcement action charging Defendants Michael Salerno of Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, and his companies Black Diamond Forex LP and BDF Trading LP, both Pennsylvania limited partnerships, and Advanta FX, a Pennsylvania corporation, with fraudulently soliciting members of the public to become foreign currency (forex) proprietary traders and with misappropriating the traders’ funds for purposes other than forex trading.

Relief Defendants

The Complaint, filed on April 17, 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, also charges Black Diamond Investment Group, a Pennsylvania limited liability corporation, and Advanta Capital Markets Ltd., a Saint Vincent and the Grenadines company, as Relief Defendants for holding funds belonging to proprietary traders. As alleged, the Relief Defendants were funneled funds that Defendants had received from proprietary traders and used the funds for purposes for other than forex trading.

On April 17, 2018, U.S. District Court Judge Cynthia M. Rufe signed a Statutory Restraining Order freezing the assets of all the Defendants and Relief Defendants, and prohibiting the destruction of their books and records. The court has scheduled a hearing for May 1, 2018, on the CFTC’s motion seeking a preliminary injunction against the Defendants and Relief Defendants.

The Scheme’s Fraudulent Hiring Process

The CFTC’s Complaint alleges that beginning in at least January 2017 and continuing through at least March 2018, Salerno and his companies fraudulently solicited individuals to become forex traders by making false statements on online websites such as LinkedIn and Indeed.com and their own websites, in violation of the Commodity Exchange Act. As alleged, the Defendants required prospective traders to pay a “risk deposit” or “risk capital deposit” of varying amounts, usually ranging from $1,200 to $1,900, with a promise that Defendants would match these risk deposits with some multiple of company funds in proprietary trading accounts, and then share a portion of the profits from trading with the traders and to pay bonuses tied to certain performance milestones. Defendants’ job postings and solicitations enticed at least 150 prospective traders to deposit at least $310,000 in risk deposits, the Complaint alleges.

Fraudulent Misrepresentations and Misuse of Trader Funds

In soliciting prospective traders, the Complaint alleges that Salerno and his companies falsely represented that Salerno had amassed a comfortable income in the forex market, possessed an overseas bank account holding $9.5 million, and that Salerno had sold off $10 million in real estate in 2015. According to the Complaint, Salerno claimed that he was using these funds to start up his proprietary trading companies, from which Salerno promised to establish live trading accounts for traders at an overseas trading company and to split the profits from those trading accounts 70/30 in favor of the trader. However, Salerno allegedly has not traded successfully in the forex markets for at least five years.

In addition, the Complaint states that in 2015, the same year he claimed to have made $10 million in real estate sales, Salerno actually filed for bankruptcy and was discharged from debts totally over $250,000. He failed to tell prospective traders that he had been convicted of a felony and sentenced to 21 months in prison in 2005. Moreover, the Complaint alleges Defendants never established live trading accounts for anyone, but used risk deposits for purposes other than trading and have refused to return traders’ funds. For instance, on one occasion, Salerno told another employee that the “payroll needs to be covered by the deposits ...,” according to the Complaint.

In its continuing civil litigation, the CFTC seeks restitution to defrauded investors, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil monetary penalties, permanent registration and trading bans, and a permanent injunction against further violations of the CEA, as charged.

The CFTC appreciates the assistance of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission and the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Financial Services Authority.

CFTC Division of Enforcement staff members responsible for this action are Elizabeth M. Streit, Barry Blankfield, Joy McCormack, Scott Williamson, and Rosemary Hollinger.
S
scalptrader2017
USA,
Apr 12, 2018,
Registered user

Advanta=BDF Trading=Black Diamond Forex

Is Gipper Pipper the name you are going by now, Michael Salerno?

Nobody believe this 5 star review. The company didn't just get off to a rocky start. It got off to a rocky start because people realized it was a scam and that the owner was a conman who had told endless lies and broken numerous promises. Thanks to sites like this and others, those who were wronged were able to warn others, so the owner has tried changing the names a couple times. Advanta is led by the same conman that led Black Diamond Forex and BDF Trading (http://www.forexpeacearmy.com/community/threads/black-diamond-forex-lp-michael-salerno-rip-off-artist.51660/#post-292073). He stole money from 150 plus people, and didn't pay his employees/managers for all the work they put in. He didn't pay rent at the Philadelphia Headquarters and they changed the locks on him, yet they still have that as the address on the website. The same will likely happen at the other offices once the initial months of free rent run out and he doesn't pay them. He even screwed over Sarid Harper who he basically just lifted all their trading methodology from. The owner, Michael Salerno, has been conning people through the Forex world or other ways for the past 20 plus years and has spent time in jail for wire fraud and tax fraud among other charges. Do not give a dime of your money to this company or any company he is associated with.
E
Elijah
CHICAGO, USA,
Apr 9, 2018,
Guest

Rocky Robbery start, but still not OK.

their rocky start included robbing no less than 150 traders, CFTC is investigating them still, their rocky ripoff start sadly is likely going to land some OF THESE fraudsters in jail.

BE careful, if they require cash or WU as payment, then nothing has changed. I back charged their merchant account for some of the monies they stole from me, they lied to the credit card company, as evidenced by the chargeback! big fat liars never change do they? You lied to hundreds of people, and stole monies from just as many, and now after your rocky start you expect anyone to believe you now?
G
GipperPipper
Charlotte, NC, USA,
Mar 27, 2018,
Registered user

New trading company that seems to be past it's rocky start

This is a fairly new trading company. Despite a rocky start over the last 1.5yrs, it's finally taking off. They have new management and trading structure. The training program and trading structure has been improved a lot in recent months.

Their goal is to train new or experienced forex traders in their Suppy/Demand trading methodology (like that taught by Sarid Harper). Payouts will start next month (April 2-18) for those that made a profit.

Like most trader training firms there are fees. Once you get over that and past the training you can begin by trading a $25k account that they give to you. You're paid $5 for every pip that you win (totaled at end of the month). You can upgrade to larger accounts and greater payouts, and if you make the account +10% for 3-4 months then you can become an analyst for the company and trade much larger accounts for the firm.

I've already made over 150 pips for this month, so looking forward to ending this month with my first paycheck.

[I'll try to update my review again in the future as I gain more experience with AdvantaFX]