Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. warns investors about scams promoting fake stock recommendations attributed to CEO Prem Watsa. The company clarifies that Watsa maintains no social media presence. Ads on Facebook falsely claim to feature his stock picks, linking to groups promising hidden investment opportunities. The campaign mirrors similar fraudulent instances involving other financial figures. Fairfax emphasizes the importance of skepticism towards unsolicited communications referencing Watsa or the company, advising extreme caution as impersonation scams are prevalent.
"Prem Watsa does not maintain and has never maintained any online social media accounts," said Fairfax vice-president John Varnell in the press release. "Any social media outlet claiming to represent him or to offer advice on his behalf is fraudulent."
The advertisements are fraudulent, similar to dozens of campaigns featuring prominent financial industry figures such as economist David Rosenberg, author and financial planner Shannon Lee Simmons and finfluencer Adrian Bar, aka "Canadian in a T-Shirt."
I am Prem Watsa, a well-known value investor based in Toronto, Canada, often called the "Canadian Buffett," said the ads. They urged viewers to click on a WhatsApp group to discover Mr. Watsa's next "dark horse" stock recommendation.
Impersonation scams are common, and so one should treat any unsolicited electronic communication that references Fairfax or Prem Watsa with extreme caution.
Collection
[
|
...
]