BaFin Warns Consumers About Unauthorized Financial Services

BaFin News

Published March 16th, 2026

Detected March 16th, 2026

Summary

BaFin has issued a warning to consumers regarding the website obsidian-group(.)org, which is suspected of offering financial, investment, and cryptoasset services without the required authorization. The warning is based on information indicating the site is operating without BaFin's approval and may be linked to previously warned entities.

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What changed

The German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has issued a consumer warning concerning the website obsidian-group(.)org. BaFin has received information that this website is offering financial, investment, and cryptoasset services without the necessary authorization from BaFin. The operators, identifying themselves only as Obsidian Group, claim registration with CySEC, which BaFin could not verify. This warning is issued under sections 37 (4) of the German Banking Act (KWG) and 10 (7) of the German Cryptomarkets Supervision Act (Kryptomärkteaufsichtsgesetz – KMAG).

Consumers are advised to exercise extreme caution when seeking to invest money online and to conduct thorough research to identify potential fraud attempts. BaFin recommends checking its database of companies for authorization status. This warning highlights the risk of unauthorized entities operating in the German financial and cryptoasset markets, and consumers should be vigilant against such operations, which may be linked to other previously warned platforms.

What to do next

Review BaFin's database of companies for authorization status before engaging in online investments.
Exercise extreme caution and conduct thorough research on online investment platforms.
Report any suspected violations of supervisory provisions to BaFin's whistleblower contact point.

Source document (simplified)

Erscheinung: 16.03.2026 | Topic Unauthorised business, Consumer protection BaFin warns consumers about the website obsidian-group(.)org

The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) warns consumers about the services offered on the website obsidian-group(.)org. BaFin has information that this website is being used to offer financial, investment and cryptoasset services without the required authorisation.

The operators of the website refer to themselves only as Obsidian Group without stating the company’s legal form. On the website, the operator claims to be registered with the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC). This registration cannot be verified.

The website obsidian-group(.)org is almost identical to the website parex-am(.)com, about which BaFin has warned consumers in the past. BaFin has information that the websites vertex-market(.)com, aspenholdingsltd(.)com and tradingessentials(.)pro, which have since been deactivated, are also part of this platform series.

Anyone providing financial, investment or cryptoasset services in Germany may do so only with authorisation from BaFin. However, some companies offer these services without the necessary authorisation. Information on whether a particular company has been granted authorisation by BaFin can be found in BaFin ’s database of companies.

BaFin is issuing this warning on the basis of section 37 (4) of the German Banking Act (Kreditwesengesetz – KWG) and section 10 (7) of the German Cryptomarkets Supervision Act (Kryptomärkteaufsichtsgesetz – KMAG).

Please be aware:

BaFin, the German Federal Criminal Police Office (Bundeskriminalamt – BKA) and the German state criminal police offices (Landeskriminalämter) recommend that consumers seeking to invest money online should exercise the utmost caution and do the necessary research beforehand in order to identify fraud attempts at an early stage.

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