KUALA LUMPUR: A businessman has lost RM1.25mil to a clone investment scam that used corporate bank accounts.
The scam is believed to be orchestrated by an online fraud syndicate posing as an international investment entity named JMC.
The Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) reported that the case involves a 50-year-old man who joined a clone investment scheme known as the JMC Capital Club after seeing an advertisement on Facebook.
The victim was added to a WhatsApp group and subsequently asked to download a fraudulent investment app, which displayed paper profits of up to RM16.7mil.
"Influenced by the displayed profits, the victim made 23 transfers totalling RM1.25mil into several third-party bank accounts between October and December 2025," the department said in a Facebook post.
The bank accounts were registered under the names JMC M Trading Venture, JMC Top Trading, JCG Entire Trading Sdn Bhd and JMC Flex Solution.
According to CCID, the fraud was uncovered when the victim was asked to pay an additional withdrawal fee of RM4.5mil, equivalent to 30% of the displayed profits.
He then filed a police report on Jan 6 after realising the investment scheme had no connection to a legitimate Hong Kong-based international finance and investment firm with a similar name.
Meanwhile, CCID also published its monthly updated list of the top ten companies, business names, and bank account owners in its Semakmule database as of Jan 15.
Based on the data displayed, at least 111 police reports were filed involving eight entities, with JMC M Trading Venture recording the highest number at 20 cases, followed by CVC Grow Star Sdn Bhd (16) and KGI HK Sdn Bhd (15).
The department stressed that a company's registration status with the Companies Commission of Malaysia is not a guarantee of transaction safety, as registered corporate or business accounts can also be misused as mule accounts for investment fraud activities.
Therefore, the public is advised to perform a check via the CCID Semakmule portal at semakmule.rmp.gov.my before conducting any transaction.
They are further warned against being lured by social media investment advertisements guaranteeing quick and unrealistically high returns.
Common red flags for investment fraud include unauthorised apps, instructions to transfer funds to third-party accounts, restrictions on withdrawing profits, and requests for additional fees or supposed taxes for withdrawal. - Bernama
