SEC ADVISORY AGAINTS Farm On / FarmOn Agricultural Production

SEC Issued an advisory versus the company FarmOn / FarmOn Agricultural Production. This advisory is dated May 17, 2016 and published on the SEC website.

Based on the SEC Advisory FarmOn company is associated with website http://farmon.ph.  This company is NOT AUTHORIZED by SEC to solicit funds from the public for investment purposes.  The public is advised further by the Securities and Exchange Commission to exercise self-restraint from investing their money into such high yield, high-risk investment scheme.

The published FarmOn SEC advisory reads:

This Advisory is prompted by inquiries and reports to the Commission regarding FarmOn / FarmOn Agricultural Production wherein investors, through its website (http://www.farmon.ph/), are invited to invest in an agricultural enterprise by “providing players/investors with virtual space where they may experience farming for real” and earn at least “50% in profit” from the sale of crops and/or livestock. An investor’s investment would correspond to specific crops and livestocks which real farmers would cultivate in actual farms.

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PLANNING TO JOIN or to INVEST in FarmOn?

If you know someone who have invested in FarmOn share this SEC Advisory to them.

Also, SEC says “should you have any information regarding the operation of the said entity, please call SEC Enforcement and Investor Protection Department at telephone number (02) 584 7652.

iSensey checked the website of FarmOn.ph and found this notification by the website admin regarding the SEC Advisory against his company, and to quote from FarmOn website:

“FarmOn.ph is not a corporation which is not needed to be registered to SEC. Instead it is a sole proprietorship which is registered to DTI. We have license and business permits to operate and legal papers and documents registered to DTI. FarmOn.ph has existing 45 hectares farm located in Isabela and Quirino Province, including the office, which we wanted all investors to visit.”

It is true that sole proprietorship businesses do not need SEC registration and licenses, as DTI / Mayor’s Permit will suffice. BUT if a sole-proprietor business actively recruits or encourage “potential investors” to invest in his business, then SEC already has a say in this because this is the government institution that monitors, accredits legit investment products and financial institutions.

Based under Section 8.1 of the Securities Regulation Code – SEC registration and secondary license is needed to allow a business entity to solicit investment fund from the public.

FarmOn WEBSITE REGISTRANT RECORD

Since FarmOn has a website, iSensey checked the WHOIS data record of this website. The domain name “farmon.ph” is registered under Registrant name: Teodulo II Otoman

Mr Teodulo II Otoman was interviewed by State of the Nation Address by Jessica Soho wherein he discussed what is virtual farming. Watch this:

It is not clear whether the person who registered this domain name, Mr. Teodulo II Otoman, is also the sole-owner of FarmOn Agricultural Production business. He could just be the web developer or hosting provider hired to register the domain name in behalf of a client or he could also be the owner itself. What do you think?

DTI BUSINESS NAME REGISTRATION

Since FarmOn.ph stated having DTI license, iSensey tried to checked in DTI website for trade name status. On the DTI website, we queried the business name “FarmOn Agricultural Production” and the business name registration system reverts back with this: “Business name “FARMON AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION” is already reserved at national level.” 

Again, on the SEC advisory it says “The public is advised further by the Securities and Exchange Commission to exercise self-restraint from investing their money into such high yield high-risk investment scheme.”