A Richmond Hill man, lost $260,000 in a sophisticated “pump-and-dump” scam shortly after moving his investments to a website falsely claiming to be Wealthsimple. Targeted by Instagram ads mimicking Wealthsimple’s branding, Klait joined an online trading forum that initially helped him profit $14,000.
Trusting the group, he invested a larger sum, only for the stock to crash immediately. The forum and contacts subsequently vanished. Wealthsimple clarified that fraudsters often misuse their logo and urged caution regarding social media financial advice.
Klait, now rethinking his retirement, shared his story to warn others about schemes promising quick returns and using fake institutional branding.