QFCRA cautions against bogus investment fund

The QFC Regulatory Authority has strongly warned investors and consumers about an investment fund claiming to operate from Tornado Tower in Doha.

QFCRA said it strongly advises people to avoid any dealings with a company called ‘Portable Fund’ and ‘Portable Revenue System’, and any person connected with the company.

On its website www.portablefund.com the company makes “three false claims” that it is authorised and licensed by the regulatory authority and that it has an office in Tornado Tower, Doha.

“Portable Fund and Portable Revenue System (Portable) is not part of the QFC and it is not regulated by the QFC Regulatory Authority. This means customers of Portable are not protected by QFC consumer protection legislation,” QFCRA said.

“This company has made false claims about being authorised and licensed to conduct financial services in the Qatar Financial Centre. These misrepresentations are a clear warning sign that the company should be avoided”, said QFC Regulatory Authority CEO Michael Ryan.

Ryan also stated that the regulatory authority is taking all appropriate actions to require Portable to withdraw the false statements regarding its regulatory status.

“If a consumer is offered financial services or advice by a firm, it is important that they confirm the firm is properly regulated to conduct financial services, and that they will benefit from the applicable protections afforded to consumers. A firm that is properly regulated will be able to provide that confirmation quickly by referring the consumer to the public records maintained by their regulator,” a QFCRA statement said.

If a firm states that it is authorised by the Regulatory Authority, consumers can confirm this by checking the Public Register on the Regulatory Authority’s website at: http://www.qfcra.com/en-us/publicregister/Pages/default.aspx.

Details of all firms licensed by the QFC Authority can be found at: http://www.qfc.com.qa/en-US/public-register-2.aspx

 

Katara to launch Ramadan Festival today

QNA/Doha

 

The Cultural Village Foundation (Katara) has announced it will launch ‘The Festival of Ramadan’ today until Eid al-Fitr, the lesser bairam, Katara’s general manager Dr Khaild al-Sulaiti has announced.

He said the idea of this year’s festival is inspired by the spirit of Ramadan and presents the deep-rooted Arabic culture and heritage of Islamic civilisation. The activities of the festival will reflect the importance of Ramadan and its influence on Qatari society, he added. 

He said these activities will also demonstrate the intellectual richness of Islam, which has spread around the world and presented comprehensive culture to humanity.

“The cultural village has adopted Arabic calligraphy as a title of the festival of Ramadan for this year,” Dr al-Sulaiti said, adding: “Arabic calligraphy is a main element in Arab nations and Islamic culture. It is not a writing style but it is also a way to decorate buildings, and because of that, the cultural village assumes to celebrate this year with Arabic calligraphy,” he noted.

He further said that the festival will not be a calligraphy exhibition, but it will present various collections of Arabic calligraphy that were never seen before.

The festival will feature an exhibition on the history of the Holy Qur’an, which will show the historical development of Arabic calligraphy according to Ibrahim Fakhro, a leading artefact collector in the Gulf region. He will also present his collection of unique and original pieces, which includes samples of Arabic calligraphy without dots besides Mus-haf Qatar. 

The collection also includes the first printed Qur’an and the first script for Mus-haf Qatar.

A group of leading Islamic preachers will give 10 public lectures throughout the festival, Dr al-Sulaiti said.

 

 

Transmission ‘towers causing diseases’

Citizens have complained that new cases of cancer and other diseases, including those with “mysterious” symptoms, are emerging in the country. They also believe that these are caused by transmission towers installed by telecommunication companies on buildings, local daily Al-Arab has reported.

In many parts of Doha, citizens have complained about the harmful effects of such towers on their health and requested the authorities concerned to remove them. While the telecommunication firms have maintained that these towers do not pose any health risks, citizens feel otherwise.

A member of the Central Municipal Council (CMC) confirmed that there were reports of an increase in cancer cases as well as the prevalence of “mysterious” diseases, according to the report. He said citizens also complained of stress, headaches and other disorders.

According to another member of the council, a housewife in Dafna claimed that she and her family members were facing problems like a buzzing sensation in the ears, nervous tension and stress, the reasons for which were not clear, said the report.

Recently, Gulf Times carried a report on the CMC’s demand that temporary transmission towers should be shifted to suitable permanent locations. The Services and Utility Committee of the CMC had also discussed the issue of any potential harmful consequences of such transmission towers on public health with officials of various government and private entities.

Representatives of telecom companies had affirmed that there were no confirmed studies in the world to prove the harmful effects of such towers on human health.

 

Warning against fraudsters who promise cash prizes

Residents have been warned to remain alert and not fall prey to cheats who seek to dupe people with the promise of cash prizes, local daily Al-Arab has reported.

Usually, a fraudster contacts a person on his/her mobile phone and claims to be a representative of some well-known communications company, the report pointed out. Then, he tells the victim that s/he has won some cash prize and asks for personal information such as bank account number as well as a sum of money to facilitate transfer of the cash prize. The communications firms have firmly denied the involvement of their employees in this matter, saying it is the work of fraudsters, according to the report.

The report quoting ‘experts’ also urged people to be careful while browsing the Internet. While the Internet is used by many people for advertising and trading purposes, there are elements that try to cheat them through dubious transactions.

The victims are lured by offering them prize money, for which they have to invest a small amount in some scheme, according to one modus operandi. Residents are also sometimes contacted and told that they have won a cash prize; to get the money, they first need to transfer an amount to a particular account by using their ATM cards, the report points out.

There are times when people believe the fraudsters and fall prey to their schemes, especially when they urgently require money. Others who are cheated in this fashion include people who have planned small projects and are waiting for financing opportunities. Such victims are contacted and told that they have won “half a million dollars” in a special draw. The fraudsters then ask for details as well as some money.

A resident said he was given an offer – on the Internet - to undergo training on how to trade and asked to send $200 for this purpose. He paid the amount, but there was no response from the other side after that, the report said.

 

CID takes steps to curb begging

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has taken steps to prevent begging.

CID director Brig Musfir Ali al-Hababi has said the department has a special section to deal with the problem of begging. It has also opened hotlines - 2347453, 2347444 and 66414040 - to report cases of begging in a bid to curb the menace, Arrayah has said in a report.

Brig al-Hababi said the CID has made elaborate plans to prevent begging during Ramadan. These include intense patrolling throughout the day in cars as well as on foot. He also said a number of expatriates who had entered Qatar using tourist visas were captured recently for begging, the report said.

Captain Mansoor al-Khiyarain from the anti-begging section has told Arrayah that the patrolling teams will cover places such as mosques, commercial complexes and markets. He has urged people to make donations to charity organisations and not give alms to beggars, according to the report.

 

Emir exchanges greetings

HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani exchanged greetings, during separate telephone calls, with President Abdullah Gul of Turkey and Iran’s President Hassan Rowhani, on the advent of the holy month of Ramadan.

 

Envoy meets Mongolian leader

Mongolia’s President Tsakhia Elbegdorj met Qatar’s Ambassador to South Korea, Ali bin Hamad Mubarak al-Marri, who represented the State of Qatar at the inauguration ceremony of the Mongolian President in Ulan Bator. The ambassador conveyed the greetings of HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani to the Mongolian President.