The Superintendency of Banks of Ecuador has warned that 19 unauthorized entities have been detected taking funds from the public in Ecuador without legal authorization to operate. It said this conduct breaches Article 254 of the Organic Monetary and Financial Code, which prohibits natural or legal persons outside the national financial system from collecting resources from the public or carrying out activities reserved for the financial sector. The authority published the names of the 19 entities and urged the public to verify whether a provider is legally authorized before handing over money or using financial services. It also pointed readers to its updated list of unauthorized entities and its public register of authorized and supervised institutions, and said alerts and complaints received from the public are assessed under the applicable legal framework so that corresponding action can be taken within its remit.