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Tag: 8Elos

  • India’s Central Bank Issues MLM Caution

    It didn’t take long for MLM to get some bad press in 2015. The Reserve Bank of India, the nation’s central bank, cautioned the public “against Multi Level Marketing Activities” on the first day of the new year.

    RBI issued the statement less than a month after police in Bangalore arrested four individuals associated with a “program” known as YOBSN (Your Own Branded Social Network). In November, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleged an India-based “program” known as “Profits Paradise” was a fraud.

    Some Ponzi analysts are questioning whether an emerging cycler scheme known as Unison Wealth may be Indian in origin. Unison Wealth is lauded by promoters of the Achieve Community scheme. (See K. Chang comment at PP Blog and thread below this Dec. 9 Unison Wealth Story at BehindMLM.com.)

    At least one previous MLM scheme — Club Asteria — traded on the venerated name of Mahatma Gandhi. A recent scheme known as 8Elos that may have ties to TelexFree Ponzi-scheme hucksters has traded on the venerated name of Abraham Lincoln.

    Here is RBI’s full statement (italics added):

    The Reserve Bank of India has cautioned the public against Multi-level Marketing (MLM) activities so that investors do not fall prey to unscrupulous entities.

    Explaining the functioning of these entities, the Reserve Bank stated that MLM/Chain Marketing/Pyramid Structure schemes promise easy or quick money upon enrolment of members. Income under such schemes majorly comes from enrolling more and more members from whom hefty subscription fees are taken rather than from the sale of products they offer. It is incumbent upon all members to enroll more members, as a portion of the subscription amounts so collected is distributed among the members at the top of the pyramid. Any break in the chain leads to the collapse of the pyramid, and the members lower down in the pyramid are the ones that are affected the most.

    The Reserve Bank has advised that members of public should not to be tempted by promises of high returns offered by entities running Multi-level Marketing/Chain Marketing/Pyramid Structure Schemes. The Reserve Bank has reiterated that falling prey to such offers can result in direct financial losses and they, in their own interest, should refrain from responding to such offers in any manner.

    The Reserve Bank has also said that acceptance of money under Money Circulation/Multi-level Marketing/Pyramid structures is a cognizable offence under the Prize Chit and Money Circulation (Banning) Act 1978. Members of public coming across such offers should immediately lodge a complaint with the State Police.

    Alpana Killawala
    Principal Chief General Manager

  • OUTRAGEOUS! Emerging Scheme That Appears To Have TelexFree Ties Is Trading On The Name Of Abraham Lincoln

    8elosUPDATED 12:24 P.M. EDT U.S.A. BehindMLM.com has a story today about an emerging “program” known as “8Elos” that may have ties to TelexFree promoters, including Sann Rodrigues, already charged with fraud in the TelexFree Ponzi- and pyramid case.

    Rodrigues is an alleged recidivist securities- and affinity fraudster who now may be adding a shiny object scheme (emeralds) to his fraud bona fides. The evolving situation is so bizarre it almost defies description. BehindMLM, which reports 8Elos is using addresses in the British Virgin Islands and Switzerland, has published an early review here.

    One of the things that caught the eye of the PP Blog is that 8Elos appears to be trying to loosen American purse strings by trading on the venerated name of Abraham Lincoln through the use of a quote on leadership attributed to the 16th President of the United States.

    The PP Blog could not immediately confirm that Lincoln ever spoke the words attributed to him by 8Elos: “The greatest ability of a leader is to develop extraordinary abilities in ordinary people.”

    By even attributing a quote to Lincoln, however, 8ELos may be trying to sanitize a scam in largely the same way a 2011 MLM scam known as Club Asteria tried to sanitize its scam and bring in large numbers of Indians. Club Asteria leeched off the name of Mahatma Gandhi.

    8Elos may be targeting Brazilians, Brazilian-Americans and Latinos. Based on the flags published on its website, it also may be targeting Chinese, Portuguese, Spaniards and Russians.

    Lincoln was assassinated in 1865; Gandhi was assassinated in 1948.

    Club Asteria put a “JOIN OUR MISSION” button below a quote attributed to Gandhi.  It also placed a “JOIN NOW” button directly below an image of the actor Will Smith — this after months of trading on the names of the American Red Cross and the World Bank.

    8Elos, which implies it has ties to emerald and gemstone deposits in Brazil, curiously describes itself as “the perfect link between everything and everyone, the four elements with the four dimensions, people in search of infinity and its preciousness.”

    Also see PP Blog story from Oct. 2, 2012: “Was This Man Your Zeek Sponsor?”

    Also see this May 29, 2014, Media Alert from the Utah Securities Commission, an arm of the Utah Department of Commerce.

    From the lede (italics/bolding added):

    The Utah Securities Commission issued a Final Order against Jack Phillips, an Oregon resident, for conning Utah investors into several phony investment schemes involving travel cards, foreign currency trading, and importing Brazilian emeralds for sale all while promising guaranteed returns of 300 to 500% with no risk to investors.