News Release

In honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, the Arizona Corporation Commission’s Securities Division is pleased to unveil its new investor education website in Spanish, www.azcc.gov/azinversor.

 The mission of this new website is to help raise awareness about wise investing and investment fraud prevention within the Spanish-speaking community, and is the first investor education website entirely in Spanish among state, federal and non-governmental securities regulators in the U.S.

 “The Corporation Commission’s Securities Division has seen an increase in cases involving fraud specifically targeting the Hispanic community here in Arizona,” said Chairwoman Márquez Peterson. “Having investor resources available in Spanish will help raise awareness and reduce the possibility of them being defrauded.”

 A popular saying in Spanish is: “un camarón que se duerme se lo lleva la corriente.” It literally means “a sleeping shrimp will get swept away by the current.”  This saying is also an appropriate metaphor for avoiding investment fraud: If you do not stay vigilant, you could get swept into an investment scam. 

 Besides fraud prevention information, the new website has investor resources for different demographics such as seniors, adults and families, pre-retirees and the sandwich generation (SanGEN). Additionally, there is section on the latest news and Investor Alerts as well frequently asked questions (FAQs).

 The Commission’s Securities Division encourages Arizonans to share its bilingual information with others. In addition to the website, you can:

• Subscribe to Investor Alerts in Spanish or English with a link that can be found at the bottom of each website page,
  
  
• Follow the ACC on Facebook (www.facebook.com/CorpCommAZ) and Twitter (@CorpCommAZ),
  
  
• Order free copies of hard-copy brochures to distribute at events, clinics, community centers, workshops, and schools. Simply send an email the Investor Education Coordinator at infoAZinversor@azcc.gov, and
  
  
• Verify license status of an investment promoter, submit an investor complaint in Spanish or report a possible investment scam to the Duty Officer or Oficial de Servicio by email at ValoresDiv@azcc.gov or by local telephone at 602-542-0662 and toll-free in Arizona, 1-866-VERIFY9 (837-4399).