
In Nigeria, Ponzi schemes are camouflaged as investment companies such that anyone can fall victim. After MMM crashed in December 2016, one would expect that Nigerians would have grown wiser. But No!
Many Nigerians have become more stupid, including me, so stupid that they even borrow money to invest in Ponzi. Nigerians don’t always have money until it is time to put ₦30,000 to get ₦150,000.
After MMM, I lost money in three subsequent investments. So far, I have been scammed four times.
Every week, I receive emails and calls from clients who have lost money in different investment schemes, crying hot tears and requesting how they can get back their money.
Others have overwhelming debts that they are still paying to date. Some people’s financial life has never gained balance after a major investment loss. RIP to the many investors who committed suicide after a huge loss.
From 86FB, Imu Ovaioza, Gloria Osei and Muyiwa Folorunsho, Ink Nation, Ovest, Wale Kingdom Capital, Tradera, Chinmark, RackSterli, MBA Forex, Quintessential Investment – name it.
Elizabeth and Bamise Ajetumobi (Imagine Global Solutions Ltd.) relocated abroad overnight after running away with investors’ money.
Even some of the Fintech companies you envy are sophisticated Ponzi investment companies that have brought tears to their investors.
As much as I encourage people to invest money, I do not blame people who have decided to use their money to eat asun and drink Goldberg.
These Ponzi companies have become so guerilla that they even hire celebrities to influence their businesses and push their brands as legit.
They have Head offices and erect big billboards all over the big cities. They partner with legal insurance companies. They issue signed MOUs and agreement documents. They even do live videos with their investors to consolidate their credibility.
The difference between a Ponzi investment and an investment company is that a Ponzi investment takes the funds of new investors to pay old investors, while an investment company pays investors from the profit they make.
Little wonder, most Ponzi investments crash around December because every investor wants to cash out, and nobody is putting in money.
Although some investment companies are built to fail, the truth is that investment companies don’t fail because they hire influencers or because they did not follow government regulations.
Some investment companies fail because they take short-term loans and invest in long-term businesses.
Some investment companies fail because they invested in something that didn’t yield any profit or a very high-risk investment where they lost money heavily.
Some investment companies started operating legitimately, but along the line, yam pepper scatter scatter. One thing led to another, and their bank accounts got frozen.
Do you know that there is a public list of licensed investment companies and authorized operators on the SEC website that interested investors can verify?
My only annoyance is that SEC usually shows up late after investors have lost their funds and when SEC eventually clamps down on an illegal investment company, there is usually no plan for investors to recover their funds.
Although Joshua Adeyinka Kayode (CEO of Quintessential Investment) spent some days in the EFCC custody and was eventually granted a court bail, the investors never got back their money. That was the end of Solomon Grundy! Òpin sinimá!
Before any investment company can pay you 25 percent ROI monthly, it means that they generate higher profit to cater for staff salaries, rent, logistics, marketing and even make a profit themselves.
If not because greed blocks the logical part of your brain, you should have asked, “What exactly are they investing in that could be so profitable within a short time?”
If that is how easy and profitable doing business in Nigeria is,Nigeria should have one million unicorns by now, and the CEOs of these investment companies should be competing with Elon Musk.
Before you invest;
- Ask logical questions. If you do not understand what they invest in, don’t risk your money. Dem dey pay no be due diligence. If their accounting books can’t show the cash flow, it is most likely a Ponzi.
- Acquire some basic financial education that will help you detect Ponzi investments easily.
- Check your own greed. You fit be your own problem.
- Don’t invest because other people are doing it, no matter how much you trust them. If it is a trendy or popular investment, it is most likely a Ponzi. These Ponzi companies try to win their investors’ trust by paying the promised ROI regularly at the initial stage of the investment so that they can get more investors through referrals.
- If you are asked to make a small investment and then recruit others to make small investments too so you can go higher up the ranks, run! Provide Help to Get Help always end in tears.
- Stay away from opportunities that present themselves as ‘now or never.’ One wrong investment decision can ruin your financial life. Poverty is too stubborn that it takes patience to grow wealthy.
- If the ROI is too crazy or illogical and their offers are too mouthwatering, run. If it looks too good to be true, investigate. Trust your guts!
- Watch out for any investment company that do giveaways or give out prizes lavishly on their social media platforms. They do this to make their investors believe that the CEOs have so much money already and can never scam investors of their chicken change.
- If they have to show you a receipt of credit alerts to convince you, run!
- Haven’t you noticed that most of these Ponzi investments often hide under FOREX, Real Estate and agricultural schemes to entice investors? This is a more reason to question the huge ROI in a short time.
- Even if they are registered with the CAC and in partnership with an insurance company, but they are not licensed and registered with the SEC, don’t invest your money.
- If they use celebrities to influence their investment schemes, think twice. We can never forget how Davido and Rema promoted RasckSterli.
- If they tell you that ‘You can never lose your capital,’ run! There is nothing like NO-RISK INVESTMENT.
- If the CEO ends every of his sentence with “By God’s grace,” it is most likely a scam. Most Ponzi investments hide under religion to perpetrate evil because they know that an average African is very religious. Quintessential Investment was always playing religious songs in their backgrounds before and during live Instagram videos.
- It can be very confusing to know a Ponzi investment these days. This is why you should consult an Investment Advisor (not just anyone who has an accounting or law background) for more inquiries. Beware of aspire to perspire investment coaches. They are very dangerous. They are branded dullards with no content or knowledge about finance and investment. No professionalism at all. They use noise and branding to confuse everyone. They themselves are potential scammers.
Please note;
That you lost money in an investment does not mean you should not invest again, else you will work for money all the days of your life. You only have to be smarter, not fearful.
I offer consulting sessions that will help you make the right investment decision. Reach out to me today.
© Kingsley Ndimele
Your Reliable Consultant