URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: SEC Charges 3 Executives, 8 Promoters Of Alleged ‘Worldwide’ Pyramid Scheme Operating From Hong Kong, Canada And British Virgin Islands; ‘CKB’ And ‘CKB168’ Fraudsters Allegedly Targeted Asian-American Community, Agency Says
URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: 3RD UPDATE 5:46 P.M. EDT (U.S.A.) The SEC says it has gained an asset freeze and charged three executives and eight promoters of a worldwide pyramid scheme operating through five entities from Hong Kong, Canada and the British Virgin Islands.
Promoters of the scheme, which “purportedly” sells Internet-based children’s educational courses, gathered at least $20 million “from U.S. investors, and millions of dollars more from investors in Canada, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and other countries in Asia, the agency charged.
Entities known as CKB and CKB168 are “at the center of the scheme,” the SEC said. The complaint, which was brought on an emergency basis and initially filed under seal, is filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. U.S. District Judge Roslynn Mauskopf has granted an asset freeze. The seal has been lifted in the case.
“CKB has little or no real-world retail consumer sales to generate the extraordinary returns promised to investors,” the SEC said. “In fact, CKB has no apparent source of revenue other than money received from new investors. Bank records show that the bulk of the money raised has been paid out to accounts controlled by CKB executives and as commissions to promoters of the pyramid scheme.”
Various investment schemes with apparent footprints in Hong Kong have been pushed by online hucksters since the SEC moved against U.S. based Zeek Rewards in 2012. On Oct. 14, BehindMLM.com reported that a scheme known as WCM777 operating from Hong Kong through an entity in the British Virgin Islands suddenly announced it was closing its U.S. operations.
Whether WCM777 had promoters in common with the CKB entities was not immediately clear. What is clear is that the SEC has taken action against three MLM or MLM-like “programs” that promised outsize returns since August of last year, amid allegations that were selling unregistered securities as investment contracts. (These are Zeek Rewards in August 2012; Profitable Sunrise in April 2013; and the “CKB” entities through an emergency action filed Oct. 9 and announced today, after the seal was lifted yesterday.)
Accompanying the CKB actions was the issuance today by the SEC of an Investor Alert “about the dangers of potential investment scams involving pyramid schemes posing as multi-level marketing programs,” the SEC said. The Zeek and CKB cases are referenced in the Alert.
“CKB’s operators and promoters profited by abusing relationships of trust within the Asian-American community and promising investors they can earn more money by recruiting other investors instead of selling actual products,” said Antonia Chion, an associate director in the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. “What CKB really sells is the false promise of easy wealth.”
Here is how the SEC described the eight U.S. promoters charged:
- Daliang (David) Guo is a China native and a resident of Coram, N.Y., who was among CKB’s first U.S. promoters. He currently sits atop an investment pyramid, and claims in a testimonial on the CKB website to have earned more than $1 million within eight months.
- Yao Lin is a resident of Fresh Meadows, N.Y., who was among CKB’s first U.S. promoters. He currently sits atop an investment pyramid, and claims in a CKB website testimonial to have earned more than $300,000. The SEC’s complaint alleges that bank and credit card accounts he controls have received approximately $450,000 from CKB investors.
- Chih Hsuan (“Kiki”) Lin is a Taiwanese native and resident of Las Vegas who claims in a CKB website testimonial to have earned “one million USD” in her first two months of investing. She operates a website through which “CKB members” can log in to a password-protected area. She is within David Guo’s pyramid. The SEC’s complaint alleges that bank accounts she controls have received approximately $1.8 million from CKB investors.
- Wen Chen Hwang (“Wendy Lee”) is a Taiwanese native and resident of Rowland Heights, Calif., who claims in a CKB website testimonial to have made $53,000 within four months. She is within Yao Lin’s pyramid. The SEC’s complaint alleges that bank accounts she controls have received approximately $2.2 million from CKB investors.
- Toni Tong Chen is a resident of Hacienda Heights, Calif., and a certified public accountant who was formerly associated with a registered broker-dealer and held securities licenses. She and her husband claim to have earned six-digit commissions and in excess of a 100 percent return on their investment. They are connected to Wendy Lee and have made presentations at her weekly seminars in Los Angeles.
- Cheongwha (“Heywood”) Chang is a Chinese native and the husband of Toni Tong Chen. He was formerly associated with a registered broker-dealer and held securities licenses. The SEC’s complaint alleges that bank accounts that he and his wife control have received approximately $2.1 million from CKB investors.
- Joan Congyi Ma is a resident of Arcadia, Calif., who was formerly associated with a broker-dealer and held securities licenses. She is connected to Wendy Lee and has helped her organize seminars and other events in Los Angeles. In her CKB website testimonial, she references the day she met Yao Lin as her “lucky day.” The SEC’s complaint alleges that bank accounts she controls have received approximately $200,000 from CKB investors.
- Heidi Mao Liu is a resident of Diamond Bar, Calif., who was formerly associated with a broker-dealer and held securities licenses. She is connected to Wendy Lee and has provided testimonials at her seminars in Los Angeles. She also operates her own website that promotes the CKB scheme. The SEC’s complaint alleges that bank accounts she controls have received approximately $1.2 million from CKB investors.
YouTube video pitches and a claim that at least one promoter had acquired five properties in Las Vegas through the scheme were used to dupe the masses, the SEC said.
“Kiki Lin,” the SEC said, “exemplified the pitch in a videotaped recording posted to the Internet, telling potential investors that in the ‘pyramid triangle system, we spread it from one to ten, and ten to hundred, and hundred to thousand, thousand to ten thousand.’ Kiki Lin later added, ‘And for those who really want to make money, who are really hard working, in a short time you would all be like John,’ who she claimed ‘made money to buy five houses in Las Vegas.'”
The charged executives include:
- Rayla Melchor Santos, whom the SEC said is a Philippines national “who is featured on the CKB website as its founder. Santos is known as “Teacher Sam” and “has traveled to New York and other areas of the U.S. to participate in meetings and seminars to promote CKB.”
- Hung Wai (“Howard”) Shern, whom the SEC said is a Canadian citizen and resident of Hong Kong “who is featured on the CKB website as the director of CKB168 International Marketing.” And Shern “is one of the signatories to bank accounts used to receive and transfer funds from CKB investors, and has traveled to New York and other areas of the U.S. to participate in meetings and seminars to promote CKB.”
- Rui Ling (“Florence”) Leung, whom the SEC said is a Hong Kong national “who is described on the CKB website as its chief financial officer. And Leung “is one of the signatories to bank accounts used to receive and transfer funds from CKB investors, and approximately $4.6 million has been transferred from CKB bank accounts to bank accounts in her name and the names of entities she controls. Leung portrays herself as a professional investment adviser who will assist CKB in its supposed future public offering.”
From the SEC complaint (italics added):
2. Through publicly available websites, promotional materials, seminars, and videos posted to the internet, as well as through other efforts intended to create the appearance of a legitimate enterprise, Defendants have falsely portrayed CKB as a profitable multi-level marketing company that sells web-based children’s educational courses.
3. What CKB really sells, however, is the false promise of easy wealth. Potential purchasers of CKB products must invest in CKB to get one of its courses. Defendants promise that those investors will earn exponential, risk-free returns. In addition to the course, each purchaser/investor receives “Profit Reward Points” (“Prpts”) with a purported value of $750.
Investors are told that they will eam “passive” returns in the form of Prpt dividends and 2-for-1 splits, and that they will be able to buy and sell their Prpts in an online exchange accessible through the CKB website. Investors also are promised that they will earn massive retums by converting their Prpts into shares of CKB stock when the company conducts an initial public offering (“IPO”) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange sometime during 2014. Some Defendants allege that these returns can be achieved without any risk of loss.
4. Despite Defendants’ representations to the contrary, the Prpts are worthless and cannot be meaningfully traded, sold or exchanged. Nor has CKB taken required steps to prepare for the promised IPO and, in fact, does not meet the Hong Kong Exchange’s current listing requirements. Even if the IPO were to occur, CKB would have to go public as one of the world’s largest companies in order to honor conversions of the ever-expanding universe of Prpts.
Still, while essential to the scheme, Prpts are not its only incentive. The scheme’s ultimate goal is to tum investors into recruiters. CKB lures investors with the promise of even greater “active” returns, in the form of commissions and bonuses, for recruiting new, “downline” participants into the program. In contrast to Prpts, active recruitment is the only way to make actual significant money.
The CKB defendant entities include:
- WIN168 Biz Solutions Limited (WIN168), which the SEC described as a “private Hong Kong company” that “maintained bank accounts at HSBC in Hong Kong that were used to receive and transfer funds from CKB investors located in the United States and elsewhere. Those accounts received wire transfers from banks located in New York.”
- CKB168 Biz Solution Inc., which the SEC described as a Canadian company in Toronto that “has maintained bank accounts at TD Bank in Canada that have been used to receive and transfer funds from CKB investors.”
- CKB 168 Limited, which the SEC said shares a business address with WIN168 and operated from Hong Kong. Its alleged “sole director is CKB168 Biz Solution Limited (“CKB168 Biz Ltd.”), a British Virgin Islands corporation with its office in Tortola,” the SEC said, further alleging that “CKB168 Ltd. maintained a bank account at HSBC in Hong Kong that was used to receive and transfer funds from CKB investors, including wires coming from New York.”
- CKB 168 Holdings Limited, which the SEC described as sharing a business address with WIN168 and CKB168 Ltd. “Sample stock certificates shown to prospective investors indicate that CKB 168 Holdings is the entity whose shares have been offered to the public,” the SEC said.
- Cyber Kids Best Education Limited, which the SEC described as the controller of “five bank accounts at Shanghai Commercial Bank Ltd. in Hong Kong, at least two of which were used to receive and transfer funds from CKB investors located in the United States.”
“WIN168, CKB168 Biz, CKB168 Holdings, CKB168 Ltd., and CyberKids Best have never been registered with the Commission in any capacity and have never registered any offering of securities under the Securities Act or any class of securities under the Exchange Act,” the SEC charged.
Quick notes:
Link to SEC Investor Alert in Chinese:
http://www.sec.gov/investor/alerts/ia_pyramidch.pdf
Link to SEC complaint (English):
http://www.sec.gov/litigation/complaints/2013/comp-pr2013-223.pdf
Patrick
Quick note: I wonder what the Better-Living Global Marketing people are thinking. See PP Blog story and associated Comments thread:
https://patrickpretty.com/2013/05/12/pitchman-says-hong-kong-based-program-is-1000-percent-better-than-profitable-sunrise-and-zeek-rewards/
Also see:
http://behindmlm.com/companies/better-living-global-marketing-bid-inflation-woes/
Patrick
Quick note: Elements of the SEC’s CKB case are reminiscent of the case filed in British Columbia (Canada) in 2012 against an entity known as “Bossteam.”
https://patrickpretty.com/2012/05/04/developing-story-bulletin-filings-suggest-new-strain-of-autosurfing-cancer-discovered-in-canada-british-columbia-securities-commission-investigating-bossteam-e-commerce-inc-amid-ponzi-allega/
Patrick
Quick note: Have seen a CKB reference online that describes American and other non-Hong Kong participants as “overseas angels.”
Patrick
[…] the bust-up of the multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme CKB (aka CKB168) two days ago, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published a new “investor […]
There’s a quadmire of companies surrounded the WCM777, some of which are:
Gideon Business Society
ToPacific
WCM777 / WorldCapitalMarket / WCM7
Joseph Global Institute
Harvard Global Institute
1and300.com / .net / .org
Manna For All Church
Manna TV
eChipMinistry
The owner, Ming Xu (Chinese way: Xu Ming) claimed to be Top Ten Investor from China (huh?) bearing group names that seem to be clones of existing investor groups from Shandong China called KaiTai group and MssMutualAsia insurance. AND promises EB-5 visa application if someone will give his “investment group” 530000 USD.
K,
are any of these companies associated to BLGM or Bidders Paradise?
____________________________________________________________________
K. Chang
Oct 19, 2013 at 1:14 pm | Permalink
There’s a quadmire of companies surrounded the WCM777, some of which are:
Gideon Business Society
ToPacific
WCM777 / WorldCapitalMarket / WCM7
Joseph Global Institute
Harvard Global Institute
1and300.com / .net / .org
Manna For All Church
Manna TV
eChipMinistry
The owner, Ming Xu (Chinese way: Xu Ming) claimed to be Top Ten Investor from China (huh?) bearing group names that seem to be clones of existing investor groups from Shandong China called KaiTai group and MssMutualAsia insurance. AND promises EB-5 visa application if someone will give his “investment group” 530000 USD.
Don’t believe so. These companies are ALL IN THE US.
Unless BLGM has some companies in the US we aren’t sure about…
Patrick,
BLGM & Golden global payout inc – USA link
Global Payout Provides MoneyTrac Cards To U.S. Affiliates of Bidder’s Paradise
Press Release: Global Payout, Inc. – Tue, Apr 2, 2013 8:30 AM EDT
Email
Recommend3Tweet
Print
RELATED QUOTES
Symbol Price Change
GOHE 0.03 0.00
SAN DIEGO, April 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Global Payout, Inc. (OTC Pink: GOHE) has received a signed agreement with Golden Global Payout, Inc. (GGP), an affiliate company of Bidder’s Paradise, to supply its members with its reloadable MoneyTrac Prepaid Discover®cards. Global Payout will provide each of GGP affiliates with this prepaid card to receive commission payouts on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Presently, GGP has 5,000 U.S. affiliate members who are receiving payouts and anticipates a significant increase to 10,000 members by the end of 2013. The MoneyTrac Prepaid Discover card will enable GGP affiliates to access cash without the expense and time of receiving and depositing checks. GGP members will now be able to access their payouts at any ATM on the same day of commission payments and will have the ability to purchase products and services, nationwide using their MoneyTrac Prepaid Discover Card.
GGP is a U.S. affiliate organization of Bidder’s Paradise, headquartered in Hong Kong. The management leadership of GGP anticipates developing a direct relationship for Global Payout, Inc. with the Bidder’s Paradise in Hong Kong. This relationship would create an additional contract with Bidder’s Paradise that will provide International Debit Cards for their 24,000 international affiliates located outside the U.S.
“We are fortunate to provide all of GGP’s payout requirements, and anticipate adding additional prepaid cards based upon their growth for 2013 and 2014,” says James L. Hancock, CEO, Global Payout, Inc.
“Our affiliates are extremely pleased to know that they can access their commissions on the MoneyTrac Prepaid Discover card,” says Theresa Bernabe, Director of GGP. “This payment solution will assist us in recruiting and maintaining more U.S. affiliates in the next two years.”
About Global Payout, Inc.
Global Payout, Inc., http://www.globalpayout.com, headquartered in San Diego, California, is a management consultant services company offering companies electronic payment and prepaid card solutions. Global has a product line of prepaid products that can be utilized off the shelf or the company can customize payment solutions for qualified businesses. Through Global Payout’s processors and solution providers, the company offers both international and domestic payment solutions. The company provides for U.S. and international prepaid cards allowing account holders without bank accounts to access funds worldwide. As program manager, reseller and consultant, Global is a provider of prepaid cards in the U.S. for payroll and general spend programs. In addition, Global offers an electronic payment platform that will allow transfer of money to bank accounts and remittance locations, worldwide.
About Bidder’s Paradise
Bidder’s Paradise (www.bp8.hk) is headquartered in Hong Kong and has membership throughout the world. The company’s auction website offers mid-range consumer products in large quantities to increase the affiliate success rate and also specializes in pushing out high end luxurious products to enhance competitiveness as well as popularity.
Forward-Looking Statements Disclosure:
This press release may contain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws. In this context, forward looking statements may address the Company’s expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “seeks,” “will” and other terms with similar meaning. These forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. Although the Company believes that the assumptions upon which its forward looking statements are based are reasonable, it can provide no assurances that these assumptions will prove to be correct. All forward-looking statements in this press release are expressly qualified by such cautionary statements, risk, and uncertainties, and by reference to the underlying assumptions.
CONTACT:
Equiti-trend Advisors, LLC
800-953-3350
I’m familiar with this company in the context that an apparent affiliate of WCM777 is claiming WCM777 can’t possibly be a scam because Global Payout Inc. processes payments for it.
This particular affiliate also is planting the seed that the Wall Street Journal is aboard the WCM777 train. What appears to have happened there is that the WSJ website published a press release attributed to Global Payout Inc. and that the WCM affiliate now is counting the press release as a news story by the Wall Street Journal.
Some of the AdViewGlobal Ponzi schemers did the same thing. Instead of the Wall Street Journal, however, they planted the seed that Forbes was aboard the AVG train.
The FBI has been warning for years that reloadable debit cards can be used to launder money.
For background:
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/03/19/fbi-chief-major-threats-emerging-from-stored-value-debit-cards-and-shell-corporations-shadow-banking-system-has-exploited-vulnerabilities/
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/04/16/fbi-director-again-references-shadow-banking-system-in-congressional-testimony-warns-about-homegrown-violent-extremists-and-lone-actor-terrorists/
Patrick
Patrick,
Pay particular attention to
“Golden” Global Payout, Inc. (GGP), an”affiliate” company of Bidder’s Paradise.
Golden Global Payout Inc. has a listing in Cerritos with the California Secretary of State. The registered agent is Theresa N. Bernabe.
A Theresa Bernabe is quoted in the press release you quoted above and is identified as “Director of GGP,” Joseph:
“Our affiliates are extremely pleased to know that they can access their commissions on the MoneyTrac Prepaid Discover card,” says Theresa Bernabe, Director of GGP. “This payment solution will assist us in recruiting and maintaining more U.S. affiliates in the next two years.”
Bidders Paradise is described as follows in the release:
“Bidder’s Paradise (www.bp8.hk) is headquartered in Hong Kong and has membership throughout the world. The company’s auction website offers mid-range consumer products in large quantities to increase the affiliate success rate and also specializes in pushing out high end luxurious products to enhance competitiveness as well as popularity.”
So, if Golden Global Payout, Inc. is indeed “an affiliate company of Bidder’s Paradise” — as specified in the lede of the news release — it MAY be the case that:
* Golden Global Payout Inc. is a Bidders Paradise/Better-Living Global Marketing downline group of some sort.
* Golden Global Payout Inc. is arranging/has arranged for people who join Bidders Paradise/Better-Living Global Marketing through the Golden Global Payout Inc. group to get paid through the MoneyTrac prepaid card.
Put another way, a Zeek Rewards clone operating from Hong Kong could be paying investors through a U.S. domestic debit card.
In California, there also is a “suspended” entity known as Golden Financial Investment Group Inc., also of Cerritos, also with Theresa N. Bernabe as registered agent.
This seems to be an accompanying LinkedIn listing:
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/theresa-bernabe/47/97/213
Patrick
I, personally, doubt that GGP is related to GP. I think GGP is riding on GP’s coattails with a sound-alike name.
Apparently Chinese are onto CKB back in December 2012.
http://news.sina.com.hk/news/20121204/-6-2838958/1.html (yes, it’s in Chinese)
Apparently I forgot to translate it, so here goes:
??????????CKB168??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????CKB168???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
An online educational software seller CKB168 group, is believed to be using the method of “pyramid selling”. Furthermore, its marketing includes elements of investment, claiming that the company will IPO, and members can become stockholders, thus making its sales more enticing. Reporter (of this newspaper) has inquired with the police (HKPD) regarding CKB168’s sales and such situations. Police spokesperson replied that will investigate individual cases, and call for anyone who may be in a pyramid selling scheme to stop recruiting members. Hundreds of citizens are involved, and the affected dollars can run into hundreds of millions. Police should immediately start investigation and make public of its findings, so citizens can understand the truth. As for the citizens participating, they should contact the police, provide evidence, so police can clarify this matter.
Dated 04-DEC-2012
From the SEC today with respect to a bar order against Chih Hsuan “Kiki” Lin:
ORDER INSTITUTING ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEEDINGS PURSUANT TO SECTION 15(b) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934, MAKING FINDINGS, AND IMPOSING REMEDIAL SANCTIONS
Source: http://www.sec.gov/litigation/admin/2015/34-75483.pdf
Patrick
Full statement from SEC on settlements in CKB168 action against two defendants:
_________________________________________________________
Two Defendants Admit Liability in CKB Pyramid Scheme Targeting Asian-American Community
The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) today announced that the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York entered settled judgments against defendants Rayla Melchor Santos and Chih Hsuan “Kiki” Lin. In 2013, the SEC charged 16 defendants, including Santos and Lin, with perpetrating a worldwide pyramid scheme.
In settling the SEC’s charges against her, Santos admitted that CKB was a pyramid scheme and that she was one of its three primary founders. Santos also admitted that she travelled to the United States and worked with other CKB founders and promoters to convince investors to join CKB by falsely telling them that CKB was a legitimate multi-level marketing company that sold online education courses for children when, in fact, Santos knew that CKB sold its products only to investors and had no significant retail sales.
In settling the SEC’s charges against her, Kiki Lin admitted that CKB was an unlawful scheme and that she worked with CKB’s founders and others to promote CKB to investors across the United States. Kiki Lin also admitted that she made false and misleading statements to investors and potential investors in order to induce them to join CKB. For instance, Kiki Lin admitted that she falsely told CKB investors and potential investors that they would receive profit reward points (“Prpts”) with a value in U.S. dollars that would increase exponentially over time when, in fact, she knew that Prpts could not be converted to actual money.
Defendants Santos and Kiki Lin consented to the entry of Judgments, which: (i) permanently enjoin each of them from violating the unregistered offering provisions of Sections 5(a) and 5(c) of the Securities Act of 1933 (“Securities Act”), and the anti-fraud provisions of Sections 17(a)(1) and (3) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”) and Rule 10b-5(a) and (c) thereunder. Kiki Lin also consented to the entry of the Judgment against her which permanently enjoins her from violating the antifraud provisions of the Section 17(a)(2) of the Securities Act and Rule 10b-5(b) under the Exchange Act and the unregistered broker-dealer provisions of Section 15(a) of the Exchange Act. Santos and Kiki Lin also agreed to conduct-based injunctions that prohibit each of them from participating in an illegal pyramid scheme disguised as a multi-level marketing program. Santos and Kiki Lin have agreed to pay disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, prejudgment interest, and civil penalties in amounts to be determined at a later date by the court upon motion of the Commission. Kiki Lin has also agreed that her wholly-controlled Relief Defendant, USA Trade Group, Inc. will pay disgorgement of ill-gotten gains and prejudgment interest in amounts to be determined at a later date by the court upon motion of the Commission.
As part of the settlement, Kiki Lin also agreed to the issuance of a Commission Order Instituting Administrative Proceedings Pursuant to Section 15(b)(6) of the Exchange Act Making Findings, and Imposition Remedial Sanctions (“Order”), which was issued today. This Order permanently bars Kiki Lin from association with any broker, dealer, investment adviser, municipal securities dealer, municipal advisor, transfer agent, or national recognized statistical rating organization, and from participating in any offering of a penny stock.
The Commission’s litigation in this matter continues against the remaining Defendants Hung Wai (“Howard”) Shern, Rui Ling (“Florence”) Leung, Daliang (“David”) Guo, Yao Lin, Wen Chen Hwang (aka “Wen Chen Lee” and “Wendy Lee”), Joan Congyi Ma (aka “JC Ma”), Toni Tong Chen, Cheongwha (“Heywood”) Chang, Heidi Mao Liu (aka “Heidi Mao”), CKB168 Holdings Ltd., WIN168 Biz Solutions Ltd., CKB168 Ltd., CKB168 Biz Solution, Inc., and Cyber Kids Best Education Ltd.
_________________________________________________________
Source: http://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/2015/lr23306.htm
Patrick
I got a Chinese report that Federal Grand Jury handed down indictment for 5 CKB168 participants in Hacienda Heights area
http://www.epochtimes.com/gb/15/8/29/n4515587.htm