Paid-up Capital

[gentle]

I downloaded the business profile of the company from ACRA and was shocked by the figure in the box that indicates their paid-up capital. It was a figure in excess of 700 million Sing dollars. I googled the name of the company and was again shocked to find that its website is hosted on alibaba.com. Here's the link.
Loh K L

very prudent of you to search the business profile...

when was the company incorporated? was there any change of company name?

are you sure 700million was the paid-up capital, and not authorised capital?

paid-up capital must be really paid, whereas authorised capital is just a declared figure...

if i remember correctly, MAS require any bank in singapore to have minimum 100million in paid up capital - so you get the idea how "big" the company is...

like many others here, i also think this is a scam - unfortunately your relative fell for it...did you relative get any form of document after "investing" the $20k?

[timebomb]

when was the company incorporated? was there any change of company name?

The company was registered on the 18th of January 05. I don't know if there was a change in name but nothing in the profile indicates this.

are you sure 700million was the paid-up capital, and not authorised capital?

I'm sure. The exact figure is 710,165,002 Singapore dollars.

paid-up capital must be really paid, whereas authorised capital is just a declared figure...

Not if the company is a Limited Exempt Private Company which is what this company in question is.

like many others here, i also think this is a scam - unfortunately your relative fell for it...did you relative get any form of document after "investing" the $20k?

I don't know. Like I said earlier, he's pretty secretive about the whole thing. The evidence suggests the whole thing is a scam but we won't know for sure until my relative loses his money.

Loh K L

[timebomb]

For those who participated in this thread that I started, you may like to know the outcome.

It's not hundred percent clear yet but the last time I met my relative, I asked him about his investment. It turns out he not only invested 20 thousand. In total, he put in 60 thousand. He managed to pull in another 2 investors from his wife's family.

I asked him how his investments were doing now and to my shock, he expressed worry. He said the person ( a lady friend) who persuaded him to invest in the first place just told him that the money was not safe. I asked him to explain what he meant by "not safe" but he did not want to say more. I didn't want to push him.

It's the same old story. When people are scammed of their money, they lose not just the money but their self-esteem as well. They are so embarrassed by the loss they don't want to talk about it anymore.

Loh K L

[blue33]

Well this is an expensive experienced for them to learn, some people are just so stubborn that they think they are always right. $ can lost but not the face.

[RonWill]

...said the person ( a lady friend) who persuaded him to invest in the first place just told him that the money was not safe

I was gonna ask whatever happened to the relative of that flip-flop fickle-minded skeptic... but oh well... sh!t happens.

Eh Kwek Leong, remember the saying that goes, "there's a sucker born every minute"? The shrewd ones just need to know when to harvest them.

Still, I hope whoever that has invested can retrieve, able to absorb or reconcile with such exorbitant losses.

[timebomb]

IEh Kwek Leong, remember the saying that goes, "there's a sucker born every minute"? The shrewd ones just need to know when to harvest them.

Yes, I'm familiar with the saying, Ronnie. But I think it's more to it than just that. I think there's actually a sucker in all of us. We all fall for sucker traps; it's just that we fall for different ones.

The thing about my relative - he can't even go to the police. The guy who suckered him out of $60K did not commit any illegal act. It was a "willing buyer, willing seller" arrangement. There were many false promises made but none were committed to paper. He can't prove a thing. And although I don't really know how he feels, I kind of suspect that despite the fact that his money is all gone, he still believes it is a legitimate investment scheme. You can say he's now in "self-denial" mode.

Loh K L

[RonWill]

Not to sound mean but that's really too bad. "A fool and his money is soon parted" and yes, even my money management is, for lack of a better word, sucks!

Regardless, 60K is a lot of money especially during these trying times and the best anyone can hope for is to accept and reconcile with one's foolhardiness.

*My hindsight is 20/20. It's my foresight that's really screwed!!*

[apollo]

I am sorry to hear this sad story.

But i am sure we will hear another soon.

Greed and fear is always in us. Greed for more money and fear for missing such a great opportunity!

Stephen