Already at this stage, I will note that in the case before me, it was not claimed by the plaintiff that Global was a party to the transactions in the trading platform on which the plaintiff traded. However, on the face of it - without expressing a position at this stage regarding Global's role in the trading that the plaintiff traded - the plaintiff acted in its investments in a trading platform similar to the one described in the Firetrade case.
Since the aforesaid has been clarified, I will turn to the examination of the arguments in this case.
the plaintiff's claims;
- I will begin by noting that in the course of her writings, the plaintiff did not detail how the initial contact between her and the defendants - or any of them - was created. However, in the course of her cross-examination, it was clarified that around July 2015, the plaintiff saw an advertisement on the Internet regarding the possibility of trading in binary options, entered the website of Option FM (hereinafter: "OFM"), saw details about trading in binary options, filled in her details and made a small deposit online. According to the plaintiff, in the framework of the website, OFM was presented as a company operating from Hong Kong and having an appropriate license. The plaintiff also claimed that she had consulted with a friend about OFM. Subsequently, an OFM representative was in contact with the plaintiff, who detailed information about binary options and told her that he would appoint someone for her to be a coach to train her (see her testimony at the hearing of 11 July 2024, on pp. 18-20).
In the course of the proceeding, the plaintiff claimed that as a result, she was approached by an employee of Global, who introduced himself as Stephen Collins, presented her with many false representations on behalf of OFM, acquired her faith and gradually persuaded her to empty her bank account and transfer all her money to OFM, including inheritance funds she received, all for the purpose of investments that he instructed her how to make. According to the plaintiff, after depositing more than $1.1 million, OFM's customer service informed her that her account was in fact empty and shortly afterwards OFM and its people, including Collins, disappeared.