Tradorax: Regulatory Warnings, Victim Complaints, and Criminal Proceedings Against Operators

Enterprise Risk Assessment and Regulatory Warnings

ProConsumer has published an Enterprise Risk Assessment for Tradorax, identifying multiple risk factors across several categories. Under regulatory and compliance screening, the platform shows matches for sanctions, watchlists including Interpol and EU databases, law enforcement mentions, criminal proceedings, regulatory enforcement actions, and ongoing investigations. The reputational and adverse media risks section notes negative media mentions, allegations and scandals, and social media red flags. The geographic and jurisdictional risk assessment indicates high country risk levels and the use of offshore jurisdictions.

Multiple regulatory authorities issued warnings against Tradorax during its operation. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) conducted a crackdown on the platform. The Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) placed Tradorax on its non-approved blacklist. The Canadian authorities also issued warnings against the platform as early as November 2015. These regulatory actions occurred while Tradorax was actively soliciting investments from the public, meaning that official warnings were available to potential investors before they deposited funds.

Corporate Structure and Ownership

According to ProConsumer OSINT data, Tradorax was established in 2013 under the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom with a location in London. The platform operated under the parent company Alagos Limited, with Alpha Capital House Ltd as the operating entity. The founder is identified as Avi Itzkovich, with Per Gunnar Astrom listed as director and James Henry Vigottski (also known as Jack Henry Wygodski) as an associate. The minimum deposit required to open an account was 250 US dollars. The platform employed between 51 and 200 people and offered over 150 asset classes.

The platform’s domain was registered in 2013 with initial launch in Gibraltar. Tradorax ceased operations in 2017. The ProConsumer report notes that investor lawsuits have been filed through Damage Claims Europe, and fraud exposure was documented by FinTelegram in 2019. Criminal probes have led to Israeli arrests in connection with the platform.

Victim Complaints Documented by ForexPeaceArmy

The ForexPeaceArmy website, a well-known consumer protection platform for forex and binary options traders, has documented extensive complaints against Tradorax. The platform has been marked as SCAM with confirmation from the FPA Traders Court. In December 2016, the FPA announced that there were two more FPA Traders Court guilty votes against the company, bringing the total to four. Based on this, the FPA officially considered Tradorax to be a scam and recommended against placing money with the company.

A user identified as Rose B from the Netherlands posted a detailed complaint in June 2016 describing a nightmare experience. The user stated that after five months with Tradorax, the company proved to be a big scam. Initially, the representatives were nice and encouraged increased deposits, assigning a personal broker who would execute trades on behalf of the client. However, the user reported that the brokers engaged in vengeful trading, meaning they would bet the client’s money out of spite when the client expressed a desire to stop trading. The user further stated that withdrawals were impossible without a broker convincing and harassing the client about keeping money with the platform. The user concluded that because the platform was unregulated, no complaint could be filed with any governing body.

A user identified as Johan South Africa from South Africa posted in May 2016 warning others to stay away from the company. The user alleged that the support department and brokers worked together to reset customer passwords, allowing brokers to execute risky and high-value trades without authorization. Attempts to withdraw money or close accounts were ignored.

A user identified as Amar Tukic from the United Arab Emirates reported in May 2016 that after being unable to login to his account and resetting his password multiple times, he discovered that the platform had canceled his withdrawal request of 1000 US dollars and placed many losing trades using his entire balance of 1500 US dollars. The platform initially claimed he had been hacked, but the user noted that many other accounts experienced the same issue.

ForexPeaceArmy Traders Court Cases

Several cases were escalated to the FPA Traders Court with guilty verdicts against Tradorax. A user identified as Mamello from South Africa filed a case in November 2016 with the comment that his life was a mess since joining Tradorax. He stated that he had never withdrawn any profit from his investment, that his withdrawal requests were constantly canceled, and that new long-term trades were placed on his behalf without his consent. He described the company’s representatives as rude and disrespectful, noting that they were nice initially but treated clients like beggars once they obtained the money.

A user identified as JG2835 from the United States filed a case in January 2017 with the title TRADORAX THIEVES. The user advised others to contact their banks to dispute charges if the account was funded within 60 days. The user described the organization as an absolute crooked organization of cowardly thieves. The user also noted that Tradorax claimed to process transfers through a third party processor, but that company was actually the parent company of Tradorax by another name.

A user identified as neric from South Africa filed a case in October 2016 describing an 18-month trading relationship with Tradorax. The user detailed how the platform used bonuses and risk-free trades as bait without disclosing the conditions attached. The user claimed that the platform added the amounts of canceled losing trades to the bonus figure, effectively increasing the amount that needed to be wagered before any withdrawal could be requested. The user also alleged that the platform offered a tablet device for watching live trading as an enticement to become a VIP customer.

Consumer Reviews on ScamAdviser

ScamAdviser has evaluated Tradorax and assigned a very low trust rating. The website states that the trust rating is very low, indicating that the website is likely a scam. The algorithm checked multiple factors including ownership details, location, popularity, customer reviews, and phishing indicators. The negative findings include the website owner using a service to hide identity on WHOIS, a low Tranco ranking indicating very few visitors, mainly negative reviews, and the website not being optimized for search engines.

ScamAdviser recorded 11 consumer reviews with an average score of 2.8 stars out of 5, with the overwhelming majority being negative. One reviewer stated that the platform is a scam site and advised others not to put money into it. Another reviewer warned that positive reviews are lies and that the company are crooks. The reviewer also stated that the platform is not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom.

Negative Reviews on ProConsumer

The ProConsumer platform has documented multiple negative user reviews for Tradorax. The platform has been accused of defrauding investors through deceptive practices like refusing withdrawals and manipulating account balances, as reported by Forex Peace Army in 2016. Users reported Tradorax withholding funds, falsely claiming transfers were made, and reducing account balances without consent.

The Independent newspaper reported in 2017 that Tradorax scammed savers, particularly pensioners, by freezing accounts and denying payouts, with one victim losing nearly 60,000 pounds. ForexFraud.com highlighted complaints in 2016 about Tradorax’s refusal to credit accounts, identity theft concerns, and software manipulation to generate losing trades. FinTelegram identified Tradorax in 2019 as part of a binary options scam network that defrauded investors of hundreds of millions between 2013 and 2017.

Criminal Proceedings Against Operators

According to investigative reports, the Koblenz Prosecutor’s Office in Germany, in collaboration with Europol and Eurojust, organized an action day in May 2021 targeting a large-scale Israeli binary options fraud scheme. Following over a year of investigations, the Prosecutor General officially charged the individuals behind the scams linked to KayaFX and KontoFX, which were successor platforms to Tradorax. The alleged masterminds were identified as Avi Itzkovich and his associate James Henry Wygodzki, who were believed to have established and managed the criminal operation.

The cybercrime group operated boiler rooms in Sofia, Bulgaria, through Mercure Group EOOD, previously named Rax Media EOOD, a company registered in January 2014 and co-founded by Itzkovich and Wygodzki. Both Itzkovich and Wygodzki have pleaded guilty and are expected to surrender a significant portion of their assets as part of the restitution process. Charges have also been filed against the former chief technology officer, two office managers, and multiple boiler room employees for their involvement in the criminal enterprise.

Consumer Alert for Potential Victims

Based on the collected data from ProConsumer, ForexPeaceArmy, ScamAdviser, and investigative reports, individuals who invested with Tradorax or any associated platform should consider the following risk factors. Tradorax operated without regulatory licenses and was flagged by multiple authorities including ASIC and CySEC. The platform has been officially declared a scam by ForexPeaceArmy based on multiple Traders Court guilty verdicts. Victims reported unauthorized trading on their accounts, password resets by staff, and cancellation of withdrawal requests. The platform targeted pensioners and vulnerable investors, with one documented loss of nearly 60,000 pounds. The operators Avi Itzkovich and James Henry Wygodzki have been charged by German authorities and have pleaded guilty to fraud charges. The platform’s parent company structure involved offshore entities in Gibraltar and the United Kingdom.

Affected individuals should contact the investigating authorities in their jurisdiction. In Germany, victims should contact the Koblenz Prosecutor’s Office. In the United Kingdom, victims should contact Action Fraud and the Financial Conduct Authority. Victims should also document all communications, transaction records, and any evidence of unauthorized trading for use in restitution proceedings.

Related Businesses and Entities

The corporate network associated with Tradorax includes the following entities based on OSINT data. The parent company is Alagos Limited. The operating entity is Alpha Capital House Ltd. The founder is Avi Itzkovich. The director is Per Gunnar Astrom. The associate is James Henry Vigottski, also known as Jack Henry Wygodski. The Bulgarian operating companies include Rax Media EOOD and Mercure Group EOOD. Successor platforms linked to the same network include KayaFX, KontoFX, UProFX, InstaFX, and LibraMarkets. The technology provider was SpotOption, which was later pursued by the US Securities and Exchange Commission for enabling widespread fraud.