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17 July 2025

Scams impersonating the Financial Markets Authority (FMA)

We are aware of scammers misusing the name of the FMA to defraud investors. The scammers use fake FMA email addresses and provide fake documents using the FMA’s name and logo to persuade victims to make payments or disclose their personal information. 

How the scams work

Scammers impersonating the FMA will usually claim you are entitled to some sort of payment. The reasons they give vary from case to case. For example:

Recovery scams

  • If you’ve fallen victim to a scam in the past, the FMA impersonators may claim they have recovered your lost funds. They will often say a payment is needed to cover taxes or transaction fees before the funds can be released.
  • The scammers may tell you that you are entitled to a reimbursement or refund related to investments you’ve made in the past.

Money remittance scams

  • They may claim that a payment to your account has been suspended or frozen due to regulatory compliance issues. 

Credit or loan application scams

  • Some scammers claim that the FMA is involved in reviewing or approving a loan or credit application you’ve submitted. 

The scammers will often claim that funds will be released to you once you make a payment to cover transaction fees, taxes, or some other expense. These claims are false. Even if you make the requested payments, no funds will be released.

Things that FMA does not do:

  1. Recover funds lost to scams.

  2. Require any type of payment to release investment funds.

  3. Grant or approve loan or credit applications.

  4. Suspend or freeze payments/bank transfers.

  5. Contact you from an overseas telephone number.

  6. Contact you from Gmail, Hotmail or other email addresses that do not end in @fma.govt.nz.

See below fake FMA emails and fake FMA employees we have identified:

Fake emails: [email protected];  [email protected]

Fake employees (likely fake names): Rob Henin; Eric Boston

 

 

How to avoid these scams

  • Check the sender’s email address. The FMA will only send emails from addresses ending in @fma.govt.nz;
  • Contact the FMA at [email protected] to verify any individuals, phone calls, documents or emails that claim to be from the FMA. 
     

Other warnings about scammers impersonating regulators

Scammers may impersonate other regulators in New Zealand and overseas; not just the FMA. See other warnings we have published about scams impersonating the FMA and other overseas regulators:

Persons providing false FMA documentation in suspected scam

Scam impersonating Financial Markets Authority

FMA impersonated in suspected money remittance scam

Fake/cloned FCA Email

Recovery scam using name of UK Authority