Singapore Sunshine Empire Ponzi Scheme

[Watchman]

Sunshine Empire
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sunshine Empire is a defunct company, with all assets frozen by the Singapore Government. The Founder and CEO are currently on trial for running fraudulent trades and investment schemes.

It was set up in 2006 as a Multi Level Marketing (MLM) company, based Singapore.

The company is listed by the Singapore Government's Monetary Authority in its Investor's Alert List, for possibly running investment schemes without authority.

Following months of investigation by the Commercial Affairs Department of the Singapore Police, Sunshine Empire's Directors will appear on trial at Singapore's Subordinate Courts in March 2009 for falsifying accounts, making false capital declarations and running a fraudulent trade.

The company had gathered up to S$189 million in funds through investment schemes, alleged to have never materialised and in fact a Ponzi Scheme. Initial trial revealed that over S$115m were paid out as 'investment returns', while another S$40m were transferred to associates as 'interest free loans' and the remaining believed to have been expended or paid out to directors as fees.​

 

[Watchman]

 

[Watchman]

 

[Watchman]

Sunshine Empire Pte Ltd

* Who is investigating into the affairs of Sunshine Empire Pte Ltd (“Sunshine Empire”)?

* What is the matter investigated by CAD regarding Sunshine Empire?

* Why is CAD investigating into Sunshine Empire?

* What is the status of the investigation?

* I had paid money to Sunshine Empire. When will I recover the money?

* What is the progress of the proceedings in the Subordinate Court?

* I have paid money to Sunshine Empire. Do I need to make a report?

* What will happen after I provide CAD with my particulars and details of my dealings with Sunshine Empire?

* I have already reported the matter to CAD. Do I have to report the matter to the Police again?

* What can I do now?

* Are there any hotlines that I can call if I have queries on the matter?



Sunshine Empire Pte Ltd

Q Who is investigating into the affairs of Sunshine Empire Pte Ltd (“Sunshine Empire”)?
A The Commercial Affairs Department (“CAD”) of the Singapore Police Force is investigating the case.

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Q What is the matter investigated by CAD regarding Sunshine Empire?
A

The CAD is investigating into the business practices of Sunshine Empire.

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Q


Why is CAD investigating into Sunshine Empire?
A There is reason to believe that the business practices of Sunshine Empire may have breached the law.

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Q What is the status of the investigation?
A

CAD has completed the investigations on Sunshine Empire Pte Ltd ("Sunshine Empire") and other companies involved in this case. On 3 February 2009, the following persons have been charged in the Subordinate Court.

a. Jackie Hoo Choon Cheat, a director of Sunshine Empire, and James Phang Wah each faced 1 charge of fraudulent trading under Section 340 of the Companies Act, 1 charge of failure to maintain proper accounting records of Sunshine Empire under Section 199 of the Companies Act and 8 charges of criminal breach of trust as an agent of Sunshine Empire under Section 409 of the Penal Code;

b. James Phang Wah also faced 6 charges of falsification of Sunshine Empire’s accounts under Section 477A of the Penal Code and 1 charge of false declaration of the share capital of Empire Communications Technology Pte Ltd under Section 401 (2A) (b) of the Companies Act. In addition to the Penal Code and Companies Act charges, James Phang Wah faced 3 charges for possession of uncensored and obscene films under the Films Act;

c. Neo Kuon Huay, a director of Empire Emall (S) Pte Ltd, faced 6 charges of falsification of Sunshine Empire’s accounts under Section 477A of the Penal Code and 1 charge of false declaration of the share capital of Empire Emall (S) Pte Ltd under Section 401 (2A) (b) of the Companies Act; and

d. Yong Wai Hong, a director of Empire Communications Technology Pte Ltd and various companies, faced 6 charges of false declaration of the share capital of various companies under Section 401 (2A) (b) of the Companies Act.

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Q I had paid money to Sunshine Empire. When will I recover the money?
A We need to comply with the legal requirements for disposal of the seized monies. These funds cannot be dealt with pending court proceedings.

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Q What is progress of the proceedings in the Subordinate Court?
A The matter is fixed for trial from 5 to 30 October 2009 in the Subordinate Court 7. Further updates on the proceedings will be posted on this website.

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Q I have paid money to Sunshine Empire. Do I need to make a report?
A There is no need to make a report to police at this point in time.

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Q
What will happen after I provide CAD with my particulars and details of my dealings with Sunshine Empire?
A The CAD will contact you, if you are required to further assist in the investigation. Updates of significant developments on the investigation will be posted in the CAD website at ww.cad.gov.sg.

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Q I have already reported the matter to CAD. Do I have to report the matter to the Police again?
A

CAD is a unit of the Singapore Police Force. There is no need to lodge another police report, if a report has been made to the CAD.

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Q What can I do now?
A

If you have reported your dealings with Sunshine Empire to the CAD and provided your personal particulars and details of your dealings, including payment of monies to Sunshine Empire, you should wait for updates from the CAD.

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Q
Are there any hotlines that I can call if I have queries on the matter?
A You can contact the CAD office at 6557 3918 during office hours. Our office hours are 8.30 am to 6.00 pm on Mondays to Thursdays and 8.30 am to 5.30 pm on Fridays.

 

[Watchman]

The SunShine Empire
See Also
Category: Singapore Miscellaneous & Others...
Tags: ...
Location: Author did not give a location for this article.
Kindly tell us where to find this in Singapore!!
Author rating
0.0
Monday, 08 October 2007
Written by CSNG - See all my reviews
Top 50 LocalKing Writer

Dear Friends,

This message is to create a warning on Empire Alliance Group (EGA). The company has a subsidiary, Sunshine Empire (SE), which mainly functions as Multi-Level Marketing Company. It is selling e-points which can be used to purchase products on their website. The scheme started 2006, August. Prior this project, EGA (or rather Jmes Phang) has another project called New-Trend International (NTI) & Magic Kingdom (which claims to invest in Indonesia property) in Singapore which also functions somewhat similar, and it is now diminished in Singapore.

Sunshine Empire is on MAS consumers alert list (http://www.moneysense.gov.sg/check_our_list/Consumer_Portal_IAL.html). If you ask any of the SE members, they’ll tell you it’s not an investment company, but their proposal & key attraction work in that nature, using the word “partnership”. Using wordings to find legal loopholes does not indicate legitimacy.

SE’s scam revealed in China: http://www.pincom.cn/action/eliteview?elite_id=1000000000225351

SE is located in Singapore, HDB Hub, Biz 3, BLK 490 Toa Payoh Lorong 6 hub, #07-10, s310490.

Anyone passing by TPY, would probably heard of Emcom or Sunshine Empire. The customers of the company is overwhelming people are literally queuing up to purchase (Gold Partnership) GP, currently costing at $11,520, to enjoy Customer Rebate Privileges (CRP) & Customer Loyalty Privileges (CLP) which is the main attraction of this scheme.

All of the people I know bought a few, some even ten, twenty, or more GP. The company claims they have more than 30,000 members each holding 1 or more GP which translate to at least $345.6 million SGD used to purchase GP. And their numbers are indeed convincing for anyone who stepped in their office before.

The money from GP is said to invest in a wireless project in Taiwan, Emcom. I highly suspect that the company is using the word “rebate” & “products” to cover meaning of dividends or investment returns or ponzi scheme. A Ponzi scheme usually offers abnormally high short-term returns in order to entice new investors. The high returns that a Ponzi scheme advertises (and pays) require an ever-increasing flow of money from investors in order to keep the scheme going (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzi_scheme#Overview).
As far as I know, the key activity in Singapore is financing, so is their function other countries establishment.

The proponent:

1) Basic membership (SM) cost $1,240 SGD
2) Customer Alpha purchases 1 Gold Partnership (GP) at $11,520 SGD.
3) Alpha will get $2,500++ SGD the following month,
4) Alpha gets $1,300++ SGD every following month till total rebate of $19,200 SGD in about 15 months, guaranteed.
5) The company is able to payout such high returns from their “other sources of income”
6) Sunshine Empire payout is based on how many people purchases GP every month (Multi-Level Marketing). SE uses new GP to pay existing GP > contravenes MULTI-LEVEL MARKETING AND PYRAMID SELLING (PROHIBITION) ACT (CHAPTER 190)
7) Once Emcom project launch in Taiwan, they’ll take 50% of the profit to share with each GP, till a total return of another $96,000 SGD. Expected to be over 5 ~8 years.
8) All “partners” are encouraged to bring in more friends & relatives to purchase GP.

The contract, as attached with this mail, does not mention about the returns, any guarantees, or cash returns, which does not match their verbal presentation. All clauses seem to cover up for the company. Even if the project did exist and profits, the company is not obligated to pay the “partners” anything.

He will get $ from ponzi schemes; All/Most Ponzi Scams WILL payout as promised as long as new members/investment are enrolled into the program, until the members/investment can no longer sustain the payout. It is designed to make people believe, & sign without reading the contract. If SE is sincere of their promise (for long term), the contract will not be written in such?

Even if he did made $ from ponzi schemes (by joining early & stop reinvesting early), it is unethical & unlawful money as it is cheated from his “downlines”.

To summarize:

1) SE is promoting Multi-Level Marketing, using new GP to payout existing GP. > contravenes MULTI-LEVEL MARKETING AND PYRAMID SELLING (PROHIBITION) ACT (CHAPTER 190) http://statutes.agc.gov.sg/

Someone told me about MLM exclusion: http://app.mti.gov.sg/data/pages/81/doc/frm_LEG_MLMOrder_Act.pdf But maybe he can’t read & understand SE’s GP costs $11,500 already fails to meet any standard in the exclusion.
2) Such “rebate income” is unregistered source of income and partners in SE mentioned some money launderers chose to buy GP. Verbal guaranteed rebate of 166% of initial purchase price, suspecting using of wording “rebate” to cover meaning of “income”.

3) The proposal is promoted as mainly investment, but not registered with MAS, however, product e-points are being sold, but not the focus of the scheme.

4) SE as MLM, not direct-selling, nor registered under Direct Selling Association of Singapore.

5) Verbal agreement does not match of written agreement, the written agreement differs from verbal as,

a. There is no mentioning any form of cash returns.
b. There is no mentioning money used to purchase GP goes into Emcom or any other projects.
c. There is no mentioning a promised percentage of EGA’s or SE’s or Emcom’s profit will be used to rebate the customers.
d. There is no mentioning guaranteed returns
e. There is no mentioning principle protected.
f. The written agreement is designed as a normal purchase agreement, whereas the verbal presentation & agreement is promoted as a high yielding, returns guaranteed investment.

6) Suspect of a ponzi /confidence scam, a non-sustainable business model that involves the exchange of money primarily for enrolling other people into the scheme. Usually over 90% of the people who get involved in pyramid/ponzi schemes never recoup their initial investment. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramid_scheme).
I have filed a report to CAD on Feb 2007 but still awaiting action. According to his statement, CAD is eager to carry out investigation on Sunshine Empire and filed to regulator MAS, however MAS haven’t pass an order for investigation on SE.

SE can probably push everything to individual’s presentation fault to avoid prosecution (that’s why the contract is different from verbal agreement, to make use of "distributors"), however since all members of SE learns and presents the same, there should be a mastermind; either way, the activity, if illegitimate, got to stop. Hope authorities can gather proof to prosecute the real masterminds instead of fishing ikan-bilis due to legal loopholes, if illegitimate.

Ponzi scams has existed more than a century, today's schemes are often considerably more sophisticated than Ponzi's, although the underlying formula is quite similar and the principle behind every Ponzi scheme is to exploit lapses in judgment arising from an investor's lack of information.

People cheated by thousands of scams around the world are not fools, many of them are graduates from universities & successful businessmen; swindlers tell stories like those you heard, & some believes. Swindlers (at least some, rest simply copy & modify) are clever, good mathematicians, good at penetrating legal loopholes (if I can understand so much, pro conmen can do better), and of course, lying.

The scheme has already affected more than 30,000 Singaporeans and multiplying by the day, it may soon reach market saturation in Singapore and may collapse, affecting the maximum population, and usually over 90% of the people who get involved in pyramid/ponzi schemes never recoup their initial investment.

No surprise we’ll know some people in SE, most people on the ground are innocent (despite annoyingly high), please do not be angry with them, although by participating & promoting they already liable to charges. Tell them about ponzi scams & JP history & senses, nicely.

Please forward this message to people you care about to warn about such schemes, and if you will, write in your concern to:

Monetary Authority of Singapore
10 Shenton Way MAS Building
Singapore 079117
[email protected] email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Tel: (65)-6225-5577
Fax: (65)-6229-9491

Commercial Affairs Department
Address : 391 New Bridge Road #06-701
Police Cantonment Complex Block D
Singapore 088762
Tel : 1800 325 0000
Fax : 6223 3171
[email protected] email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

..or relevant authorities to encourage their investigation.

No matter you are SE members or not, do encourage the investigation. So if SE is legitimate from legal audits, opposes cease; if not, we learn experience & move on. Or that day new investors are unable to sustain pyramid model, we can all learn from experience too.

Best Regards,

C S Ng

“What if five robbers were robbing for you, and they each recruit five robbers to rob for you?”

 

[Watchman]

Bruneians may lose millions as Sunshine Empire charged

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
MORE than 6,000 Bruneians, who had invested millions of dollars in Sunshine Empire, a Singapore-based company, face uncertain future as the company has been recently charged with running a Ponzi-like scheme.

The company's CEO James Phang Wah, 49, and President James Hoo Choon Cheat, 29, were charged by Singapore authorities with nearly 20 charges including running a fraudulent business and criminal breach of trust as reported by the Straits Times in Singapore, three days ago.

Sunshine Empire ScamThe individuals, who were interviewed by The Brunei Times prefer to remain anonymous for security reasons, were also considered as "merchants" for the country, in-charge of being the centre for the exchange of the "e-points", the term the company used for the monthly "dividends" paid out electronically based on US dollars, and cash collection from new investors.

However, the individuals said they were lured into the business by its extravagant offers and were victims themselves due to the legal representation the company posed during its marketing campaigns and extravagant offerings. Some even said that their lives have been ruined financially and they have lost all credibility in the eyes of the public, who labelled them as "cheats".

Harun, a previous "merchant", said that the president of the company, James Hoo, used to visit Brunei Darussalam frequently during the early stages for marketing. The company through its investors had also set up an establishment here which closed down early last year when Sunshine Empire stopped its payments, last year.

As the establishment attracted more investors, the tasks of marketing were handed to executives from Malaysia and locals, he said, adding that the all expenses paid training courses abroad dubbed 'Leadership courses' were held in Genting Highlands, Malaysia and Jakarta.

Cash incentives amounting to hundreds of thousands of US dollars and luxury vehicles were also given to "extraordinary" achievers, he said which drove them to market company's products aggressively.

Kamal, who gave up his position as a teacher, was also offered an executive role plus commission on profits from the company. "All I had to do is spend around $12,000 to buy 'GP's' or merchant status and I was earning almost $3,000- 6,000 a month in dividends, excluding the amount I earned through the exchange rates and commission on my group's earnings, which I was entitled to due to my leadership status," he said. He said he lost it all when he re-invested into another company in Hong Kong.

The dividends, both said, were given through personal online accounts and were either wired to their respective bank accounts or had to be sold to new "investors" which led to a form of trade involving unregulated foreign exchange rates.

Due to the benchmark with the US Dollar, the latter mode of withdrawal was said to be the most profitable and the most common way to get fast income as the foreign exchange rate could be fixed higher than finance institutions and cash was used.

Hjh K, a government official who had just retired, had almost exhausted her entire life savings by investing in the company. "I invested about $60,000 when I attended their leadership course. I know some other individuals who invested thrice that amount. The company had a lot of projects which I later found out did not exist. I will never see that money again," she said.

To guard public against such schemes, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) is stepping up awareness programmes against Ponzi-like, illegal or fraudulent schemes and to curb such activities. The ministry has also urged that public members could contact it should they need clarification on companies offering investment products. (JNB1)

The Brunei Times
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[Watchman]

 

[johnny333]

Madoff was sentence to 150 years jail. Curious to see what the Spore courts will hand out IF these people are found guilty