In the Netherlands, a “financially influential person” was fined for the first time

A popular figure from social networks, who also conducts master classes on financial investments, was punished for the first time by the Dutch Financial Markets Authority (Autoriteit Financiële Markten - AFM). The fine amounted to 620 euros. What happened and why was such a large fine imposed?

A popular coach and consultant, whose name has not been released, actively advertised investments in the activities of Grinta Invest, an asset management company, on Instagram and in his master classes. A small detail: her activities were illegal. For his services to the illegal manager, the consultant received payment, including 10% of the capital invested by investors on his advice in Grinta Invest. In total, the man managed to earn approximately 760 euros.

Moreover, Grinta Invest did not even have a license for asset management in the Netherlands! The assistant coach could not help but know this, nevertheless, he actively used his influence on subscribers and visitors to his master classes, encouraging them to transfer assets under the management of an illegal company. People like the fined coach are popular and influential primarily among young people - they are the ones who suffered the most. One of the investors said that the conditions of Grinta Invest were too good to be true, but a financially influential consultant finally convinced him to invest. True, this particular investor was lucky - he managed to withdraw his money from Grinta Invest while the company was still operating. 

The rest were not so lucky. Since October 2021, the financially influential consultant, the contact person for Grinta Invest, has stopped communicating and closed his Instagram profile. The exact number of victims of the scam is unknown, but it is believed that between 100 and 200 depositors of the fraudulent company were affected.  

During the trial, the fraudulent consultant denied both his financial influence and popularity. In particular, he referred to the fact that his Instagram profile was closed. But the Dutch Financial Markets Authority was not convinced by these excuses, and AFM imposed a large fine.