• The President of UOKiK found that CK Investments had broken the law by offering “investment bills of exchange”.
• The company argued in the offer that the purchase of bills of exchange is a secure and safe investment with a guarantee of the invested capital.
• The company is to pay a fine of nearly PLN 1.25 million for unfair practices.

The President of UOKiK decided to fine CK Investments for practices violating collective consumer interests. For using bills of exchange in a manner contrary to their function and disseminating false information as to the guarantee of repayment of the capital provided by consumers, the Warsaw-based company is to pay a total fine of almost PLN 1.25 million (PLN 1,249,395).

An investment bill of exchange, what is it?

CK Investments operates in the real estate market. In July 2019, the company began raising capital by encouraging the purchase of the so-called investment bills of exchange. The company promoted its bills of exchange as “a simple and quick investment product that is an alternative to traditional bank deposits, treasury bonds or mutual funds giving a fixed and high interest rate”.

- Our law does not know the concept of an “investment bill of exchange”. It was invented by entrepreneurs to describe a product that enables them to acquire capital that they would normally have to raise, for example, in banks or by issuing financial instruments -Tomasz Chróstny, President of UOKiK, points out.

High-risk guarantee

In promoting the bills of exchange offer, CK Investments asserted that the funds were guaranteed to be returned at the end of the investment. In the course of the investigation, it was established that the funds raised from the sale of bills of exchange were the main source of financing for the company's business activities.

- Assurances of guaranteed financial benefits from the venture may have influenced consumers' decisions to entrust their money to CK Investments. Despite promises, there was no mention of either guaranteed profits or even a guarantee of the return of funds paid in. If consumers had not been misled, they could have managed their savings differently - says President of UOKiK, Tomasz Chróstny.

The decision is not final and may be appealed against to the Court of Competition and Consumer Protection. If it becomes valid, the company should announce it on its website and send out written notices to  all consumers who bought CK Investments' bills of exchange between 8 July 2019 and 1 January 2023.

Investments in bills of exchange under the scrutiny of the President of UOKiK!

There are more actions by the Authority on “investment bills of exchange”. Explanatory proceedings into the Credit Royal company are underway.

In April 2023, the President of UOKiK issued a consumer warning indicating that Assay Management Alternatywna Spółka Inwestycyjna (Assay ASI) uses the bills of exchange in a manner contrary to their function, thus there is a high risk of consumers losing their invested funds. In February 2024 the President of UOKiK issued two decisions imposing penalties on Assay ASI and the company's managers for the “Bills of Exchange Agreement” offer - a total of more than PLN 1.3 million. The proceedings against Assay Management, which acquired clients for Assay ASI, also ended with a penalty (over PLN 650,000).

In 2023, the President of UOKiK issued a decision with a penalty of more than PLN 790,000 in the case of the “Aforti Holding's Bills of Exchange Offer”.

At the end of 2022 the President of UOKiK issued a decision concerning BREWE Leasing, imposing more than PLN 150 thousand in fines on this company, and in June 2021 he imposed almost PLN 400 thousand in fines on the Yanok Mortgage Fund which was upheld by the Court of Competition and Consumer Protection.

Learn more about investment bills of exchange

Check out the answers to the most common questions about "investment bills of exchange" at finanse.uokik.gov.pl(in the alternative investments section).