NEW PAYMENT PLAN FOR GETAWAY CLUB

GETAWAY CLUB'S LETTER TO ASSOCIATES & MEMBERS

To Associates and Members,
Great News!
Increase in Members Matrix Payments
Effective immediately our compensation plan has changed to give our members higher payouts, more encouragement and the best payouts on the web.
Ok, we wont keep you in suspense, here are the new payments!
Bronze, $100
Silver, $200
Gold, $2,500
Platinum, $15,000
Yes, from this point forward these are the payments you will receive when you cycle from the relevant table.
And of course, this means that bonus payments will also increase, since they are based on a percentage of the cycle payments! For example, a 5% bonus payment for one of your referrals cycling through Platinum is now $750 (increased from $500).
Many members have asked for an increase and greater incentives to help drive their marketing and prospecting efforts. After careful consideration, planning, and lots of calculations we again are leading the way with a dynamic and rewarding business.
To make these payments feasible, we have had to change the price of membership from $160 to $190 plus a $10 processing fee. However, to make this equitable and fair to all members, and to help your prospecting and recruitment efforts, the price increase will not be implemented for 30 days. Membership cost will not increase until the 1st November 2007.
So you have a complete 32 days to use this extraordinary news to save your prospects $40, and to drive your marketing efforts substantially.
Members and Associates take advantage of this great news.
You will find some new banners and promotional material in the Members area.
Keep up the good work and we wish all our members success.

Thank you,
GetawayClub Admin

COMPLAINTS AGAINST EAGLE STOCKBROKERS LTD

It has been brought to our notice that complaints has been brought against Eagle Stockbrokers Ltd and they were meant to have met at SEC ZONAL OFFICE in Lagos to defend themselves last week thursday,20th September 2007 but we are yet to know the outcome of the meeting.
We are therefore advicing our reader’s to note and refrain from investing with them until they have being cleared of all allegations.
Below is a list of those that filed complaint's against them.

1. Anu Eso & Co (Ben Harris Eze)
2. Mrs. Sophie Ima-Obong Pokima
3. Alhaji K.A. Agboola
4. Akintola Ladipo for Tunde Fatinikun
5. Alhaji Raheem A. Lawal
6. Oladipo Magreola & Co. (Yekini Bakare)
7. Ronachant Investment Ltd
8. Abimbola Odukale
9. S. O. Coker10 A. A. Nwosu
11. Illide Sunday
Investors are adhered to take note until further notice,so as not be a victim.
COMPILED BY ADENIYI ADEONOJOBI

STANDARD UNION SECURITIES STILL UNDER SUSPENSION

SUSPENSION OF STANDARD UNION SECURITIES LIMITED FROM ALL CAPITAL MARKET ACTIVITIES
The Commission has suspended Standard Union Securities Limited, a stock broking company based in Kano, from all capital market activities in Nigeria till further notice.
The company was suspended for collecting, verifying, and selling 2, 806 units of Oando Plc shares belonging to Nasiha Trade Association with the knowledge that the shares had been stolen and that the bearer (whom it later declared to be dead) was not the bonafide owner of the shares.
Furthermore, the company has been operating illegally in the Nigerian capital market since 2002 without valid registration by the Commission.
The suspension took effect from Wednesday, 25th July 2007 and will remain in force until this illegal operator has fully restituted the investor and regularized its registration with the Commission.
ALL INFORMATION QOUTED VERBATIM FROM SEC

PMI AND THEIR MENDACITY

The recent fall of wonder banks nationwide in Nigeria has caused many self acclaimed fund manager to start deceiving their investors about Return On Investment (ROI), of which PMI is one of them.
A visit to there office will reveal the tension their investor’s are having with the whole environment crowded with investor's clamoring for refund when they have deceived their investors for a long time that everything was in order. Anyway, all investors have been told to go and open a bank account with UNITY BANK(wonder bank acquiescent) so that they can get paid their returns but this development was not welcomed by investors which the infamous fund manager agreed to look into soonest. The major issues now are,mode of payment and delay of payment. A few military men who invested has taken laws into their own hands by taking the CEO of the company to their barrack.
It’s acclaimed that payment for those who invested in Week 4 will be concluded this week and week 5 investor's will be due by the ending of the month of October. For those investors in week 6,they should expect payment on or before November ending ,while week 7 should receive their payment before Christmas this year.
The rates have been reviewed without any concrete reason but week 4 investors aren't affected by such. Week 5 and week 6 investment which was NGN40,000/slot is now NGN30,000/slot and Week 7 and week 8 investment has also been reduced from NGN30,000/slot to NGN20,000/slot while week 9 investment is now NGN12,500.
For all those who have invested, I entreat they recover their capital and for those with intentions of investing, I wish them all the best.
….Written by Adeniyi AdeOnojobi

CAUTION FOR WEALTH SOLUTION INVESTORS

The infamous Dr Rowland Peters,a well known agent of a failed wonder bank called Wealth Solution has started sending e-mail’s again to WS investors who invested through him, introducing another business. A copy of the mail can be read below:

Dear Fellow Investors,
A friend of mine called on me recently and requested I informed him on time whenever I discovered a new, good and profitable investment.
Then it dawn on me that several others might need such timely information as well. Having taking my time to research some MLM businesses I discovered these to be the hottest:
Check it out by clicking on the link below:
http://www.diamondcashclub.com/diamonds
http://getawayclub.net/Rowpet
http://getawayclub.net/hannet
You must use the above link to sign up to enjoy my personal support and mentoring. If you have further question you can email me @ wealthagent18j7_141@yahoo.com or call my office manager Tunde on 08028754741,08038011549,08055904365.
We invite you to join our winning team. Some of my team members have earned $14,000:00,$ 8,000:00 &$6 000:00 respectively.
Yours Sincerely,
Dr.Rowland Peters
ALL INVESTORS ARE ADVISED TO BE CAUTIOUS.
… BY ADENIYI ADEONOJOBI

BEWARE OF PYRAMID SCHEME

They come in diverse guises, systems and names. They entice the unwary with mouth-watering promises and evoke tantalising images of instant wealth and affluence. Call them savings schemes, investment programmes or marketing operations: they offer the same goal of small investments and ensuing bumper returns on investments that no legitimate business or financial institution can offer.
And they have become ubiquitous in Nigeria. From the ‘multi-level marketing’ operations to ‘oil traders’ and outright ‘wonder banks’, the pyramids are all over the place ensnaring men and women who want riches with little effort, and making claims that skirt the twilight zone between legitimacy and outright fraud. Whether you are an executive, blue-collar worker, investor or business operator living in Lagos, Abuja or other major cities in the country, you may have been approached or heard of someone you know being contacted to partake in one lucrative ‘investment scheme’ or the other.
Sometimes, they claim to be big time investors in oil and gas operations. Or they pose as financial managers after the order of Midas, the legendary ruler at whose touch everything turned to gold. Or they label them ‘investment clubs’. The generic name for the miracle investment schemes is pyramid scheme. The online Wikipedia defines a pyramid scheme as “a non-sustainable business model that involves the exchange of money primarily for enrolling other people into the scheme, usually without any product or service being delivered”. On account of the success and notoriety such scams have had in the United States and Europe, laws and ‘experts’ on pyramid schemes abound.
According to such authorities, the genre is called a pyramid scheme because it involves an initial ‘investment’ by one person who then recruits a given number of other persons, each of whom in turn, recruits the same number of persons till infinity. As long as each new recruit is able to sign on the specified number of persons, he or she makes a profit, sometimes, as much as 500 per cent of his ‘investment’.
The system is therefore like a pyramid, whose base keeps on widening as long as fresh persons join and ‘invest’. The fatal flaw in the scheme is that for it to remain profitable to all subscribers, virtually the entire population of the earth must join and even then, the number of persons is finite. The result is that every classic pyramid scheme must inevitably collapse and the majority of subscribers will lose their money.
For the get-rich-quick, there is a variant called the Ponzi scheme. A classic Ponzi operation is a bogus investment scheme that offers abnormally high ‘profits’ on investment. The excessive profits come from the deposits paid by subsequent investors, meaning that the scheme can only survive as long as there is an endless stream of new investors also lured by the promise of super-normal profits.
It is named after Charles Ponzi, who immigrated to the USA from Italy in the 1900s and fleeced the citizens of his newly-adopted country of millions of dollars before he was caught. The difference between a Ponzi scheme and a pyramid scam is that the schemer is the fulcrum, the man accepting and dishing out returns to investors (read victims) while in a typical pyramid operation, the recruit, who successfully recruits his additional recruits, earns his promised super profit. The experts also say that a Ponzi scheme attracts the well to do and can run for as long as those who invest in it can be persuaded to ‘re-invest’.
But a Ponzi scheme collapses much faster on account of the exponential increases in the number of participants that is essential for its sustenance. At any point that a new recruit fails to recruit the required number of new sign-ons, the pyramid begins to unravel.Nigerians are in trouble because the laws are lax and there is so little information available to help people identify legitimate investment opportunities and bubbles that will ruin or impoverish them. The new type of investment that is also gaining inroads in the cities is the Multilevel Marketing Plan.
This will typically seek to recruit you as a distributor of some goods or services with a promise of large commissions. The catch is that like pyramid schemes, you are required to recruit other distributors and your sales are to these new recruits, not to the general public. Your ability to prosper under the scheme is based on the number of people you sign on and on their own success in bringing new sign-ons. Recently too, the scammers have gone online operating pyramid schemes and their variations through the Internet. To beguile the victim, they claim to be American, Canadian or European firms but rely on the well-established format: super normal profits will come your way as long as you can sign on others to invest money to earn kalokalo interests or to buy products or reports.
Some of the Internet-based firms claim to be energy traders or dealers in gold or other precious metals and offer you a chance to join the gravy train. The schemes are ensnaring many because they play on a basic human nature: greed. Researchers in the US say that of all participants in a typical pyramid or Ponzi operation, over 90 per cent will never recoup their money. The less than 10 per cent who do make money are the early birds who serve as a powerful marketing tool for the organisers. In 1997, the unravelling of a number of pyramid schemes in Albaria, in which investors lost $1.2bn, provoked a revolt that toppled the government.In the US and Europe, there are elaborate laws to deal with these schemes. But new ones keep coming in various guises such as ‘investment clubs’.
One variation noticed in Nigeria is that the operators go through pastors and other opinion leaders to snag new participants. They target pastors as the early recruits who are thus guaranteed to reap some returns. These ‘men of God’ then go on to recruit church members and others who rely on their favourable testimonies to sign on. It is said that the Central Bank of Nigeria is unsure of how to move against these firms, which, not being registered finance houses, still solicit for and take deposits from the public.
It is also clear that some bank workers are actively engaged in the schemes and are known to direct their customers to these miracle banks and marketers. It is said that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is on the trail of some operators. Religious leaders and bankers should stop allowing themselves to be used and concentrate on their core mandates.But if you do fall victim to the lure of the pyramid, know that you are primarily a victim of your own greed. Better to stick with your neighbourhood bank, the stock market or the ubiquitous esusu.
written by....Biodun Sonowo and extracted from The Punch Newspaper

WEALTH SOLUTION LATEST UPDATE FOR INVESTORS

THIS IS THE EMAIL WS SENT TO INVESTORS TODAY
As we have promised to update our Valued Investors on what is going on with WSL. Wealth Solution Limited public notice was published once again in Nigerian Tribune,Thursday 13th September,2007.
The Board and Management of WEALTHSOLUTION LTD,wish to sincerely appreciate God and you all that have partnered with us so far and for the infinite trust YOU have in the ability of Wealthsolution Ltd to productively manage your funds. It is highly appreciated. Since few months now,ithas beeen increasingly difficult to operate freely basically because of our subscribers' misconception, and lack of cooperation from the banks.
The following factors have greatly affected our productivity and performance:
(1) The ever presence of security operatives in and around our offices;
(2) Incessant invasion by these security operatives on the premises. Thus, crippling our business for days;
(3) Negative publications by the press;
(4) Government's unfavourable disposition towards the scheme; and
(5)Refusal of banks to take subscription fee from our subscribers and post our payment schedules.
These have had negative effects on our subscribers who have turned violet in order to take back not only their subscriptions but also their promised bonuses. In the light of all these, management has decided to formally suspended all activities with immediate effect. Our offices will remain closed to subscribers until the regulatory authorities are done with the on-going probe of our activities.
We assure our subscribers of the safety of their funds, and we will do all our best to institute a concrete arrangement for REFUND OF INITIAL CAPITAL, At the barest minimum. The modalities for this shall be communicated to you soon. It is therefore imperative that our subscribers should exercise some patience. We are still commited to the uplift of the quality of lives of Nigerians despite all odds.
We pledge to be back stronger shortly by God's grace.
Signed
Management
We are also using this medium to thank all those who subscribes under our agency that we cherished their understanding.
THIS SMS WAS SENT YESTERDAY TO ALL INVESTORS:
"Please look out for official statement of Wealthsolution in Punch of today, Sept 13, in respect of the recent clampdown on Fund Managers by the regulatory authorities. Thanks and God bless."

10 BIG LIES OF MLM

Lie #1: MLM is a business offering better opportunities for making large sums of money than all other conventional business and professional models.
Lie #2: Network marketing is the most popular and effective new way to bring products to market. Consumers like to buy products on a one-to-one basis in the MLM model.
Lie #3: Eventually all products will be sold by MLM, a new form of marketing. Retail stores, shopping malls, catalogues and most forms of advertising will soon be rendered obsolete by MLM.
Lie #4: MLM is a new way of life that offers happiness and fulfillment. It is a means to attain all the good things in life.
Lie #5: MLM is a spiritual movement.
Lie #6: Success in MLM is easy. Friends and relatives are the natural prospects. Those who love and support you will become your lifetime customers
Lie #7: You can do MLM in your spare time. As a business, it offers the greatest flexibility and personal freedom of time. A few hours a week can earn a significant supplemental income and may grow to a very large income making other work unnecessary
Lie #8. MLM is a positive, supportive new business that affirms the human spirit and personal freedom.
Lie #9. MLM is the best option for owning your own business and attaining real economic independence.
Lie #10: MLM is not a pyramid scheme because products are sold.
COMPILED FROM THE WORK OF Robert L. FitzPatrick

MLM....EVERYBODY HAS TO LIE

The multi-level marketing (MLM) field grows and its member companies multiply. Solicitations to join the movement seem to be everywhere. The impression accordingly grows that it is indeed the "wave of the future", a business model that is gaining momentum, growing in acceptance and legitimacy and, as its promoters claim, will eventually replace most other forms of marketing and sales. Many are led to believe the assertions that success can be found by anyone who faithfully believes in the system and steadfastly adheres to its methods and that, eventually, all of us will become MLM distributors.
MLM is not defined and regulated like, for instance, franchises are. MLMs can be established without federal or state approval. There is no federal law specifically against pyramid schemes. Many state anti-pyramid statutes are vague or weak. As in all pyramid schemes, the incomes of those distributors at the top and the profits to the sponsoring corporations come from a continuous influx of new investors at the bottom. Viewed superficially in terms of company profits and the wealth of an elite group at the pinnacle of the MLM industry, the model can appear viable to the uninformed, just as all pyramid schemes do before they collapse. MLM's true constituency is not the consuming public but rather hopeful investors. Promises of quick and easy financial deliverance and the beguiling association of wealth with ultimate happiness also play well in this market setting.
The word, lie, is provoking and it is used here for provocative purposes. At some level, everyone who participates in MLM in which little retailing is occurring is unconsciously lying to himself or herself. Many at the top of these organizations are consciously lying to everyone else. Deception is inherent in this type of MLM scheme and is pervasive in its marketing.
COMPILED FROM THE WORK OF Robert L. FitzPatrick

WONDER BANKS' WONDER

As the day goes by, I begin to ask myself what is the plan for Wealth Solution for its customers when people have pooled there hard earned money into the organization only to be toying with them as kids.
Initially, investments used to be 8weeks which was 4 operational weeks in the calendar but as more investor pumped money into the company they started getting sluggish with keep to commitment but the question is this…wasn’t there an agreement signed to, at the point of investing stating the time frame and the refund on cycling out?
If the answer to this question is yes, then why are they breaking such agreement and still expect the customer to continue investing when he cycles out? There is no future for such a company so my advice to those who haven’t invested …don’t and if you have invested….I wish you all the luck, after all it’s a risk in the first place.
But the ability to calculate a risk makes us smart by human definition except you are an adrenalin conscious person who loves taking risk for fun at the detriment of your resources.
I was told initially that an SMS was sent to there customers that Payment for Week 19 will start on August 1, 2007 but today they come up with another SMS that Payment starts on August 27,2007 for Week 19 and only 50% of return. August 27, has come and gone and now we deal with the fact that there office is closed till further notice.
Using the recent issues with CBN, EFCC and SEC as an excuse is inappropriate while the other Wonder Banks who have reviewed there rates have been at least consistent. To believe the reduction will not affect the customers is a lie when everybody has planned individually on how you intend to use your returns.
Bear it in mind that Wealth Solution wasn’t the only company giving about 300% Returns On Investment(ROI) so reduction by 50% isn’t right, SilverTrust gives about 300% as well and they have been consistent and haven’t reduced there ROI yet. But now there ship has capsized, the same faith has fallen upon them.
Anyway, it’s a personal decision as I always. We begin to ponder and ask ourselves, is it really worth it?. Robbing Peter to pay Paul or were they really doing legitimate business. This is a question we will never know the answer. Companies like Silvertrust Interlink and Flagship Asset Management have taken bold steps at least by trying to legalize their transaction and their company status in terms of Fund Management. This is a Welcomed development.
The question that will now linger on the mind of many, is what of Sefteg Nigeria Ltd, with there executive office and the make believe, of legality of business not to talk of WealthZone based in Gbagada doing business fund management without proper document. I believe it time for us to take the right steps and make the right decision. If we are to invest with wonder banks then let us invest with wonder banks who have taken the bold step on the right track.
Written by Adeniyi AdeOnojobi

SUSPENSION OF GENESIS INVESTMENT SECURITIES LTD

The Commission has suspended Genesis Investments Securities Limited, a stock-broking company, from all capital market activities until further notice.
The suspension is as a result of the unauthorized sale of 400,000 units of First Bank of Nigeria Plc, 40,000 units of Cadbury Nigeria Plc and 20,027 units of African Petroleum Plc shares belonging to an investor.
The suspension which took effect from July 18, 2007, will remain in force until the investor is fully restituted.

Signed
Management
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION PUBLIC NOTICE

WONDERBANKS-PROMOTERS IN CRUCIAL MEETING

Promoters of some fund management firms held a crucial meeting in Lagos on Saturday, in what an insider described as an effort to safeguard the deposits of their subscribers.

The meeting, which was said to have been informed by lack of access to their accounts in banks, reportedly centred on how to persuade the regulatory authorities to soft pedal on the issue of fund management companies scattered all over the country.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and Securities and Exchange Commission had commenced an investigation of the operations of investments companies otherwise referred to as ‘wonder banks.’

Consequently, some banks were said to have withheld the accounts of some of these firms, a decision which has reportedly made it difficult for them to meet their financial obligations.

Some of them were under pressure by their subscribers who derived payment of the payment of monthly interest on their deposits with the fund management firms.

Most of the ‘wonder banks’ have since closed shop with their offices under lock and key for months now.

Depositors with Pennywise, one of the operators, with office in Demurin Street, Ketu, Lagos, who went there on Friday reportedly met the place shut. The same trend occurred at the Airport, Ikeja, office of Treasureline.

A source, who was at the Saturday meeting said chief executives of the fund management firms present were disturbed by the reluctance of banks to release their funds.

“It was obvious they have been under pressure by their customers. But since banks are acting in a funny manner as far as the accounts of these firms are concerned, it has been pretty difficult for them to pay their customers,” the source said.

Banks were said to be hiding under the Know Your Customers policy to review their business relationships with the investment firms.

A spokesperson for one of the banks, however, exonerated them from the current ordeals of the investment companies, saying that the issue was that of the regulatory authorities who insisted on sanitising the finance industry.

Manwhile, the Managing Director,Wealth Solution, Mr. Bayo Oyediran in a confirmed the readiness of the management of the investment firms to pay their investors as soon as the issues with their banks were resolved.

He also pledged to ensure that everybody was paid this due to them as soon as all the issues were resolved.
- QUOTED VERBATIM : The Punch Newspaper Posted Monday, September 10, 2007

TREASURELINE'S LETTER TO INVESTORS

SECURITIES & EXCHANGE COMMISSION LICENSE
We are proud to announce that TREASURELINE INTERLINK LTD has been given a LETTER OF APPROVAL. This stage precedes the awarding of the license and this is first in the history of Nigeria .Due to this, a new package will be introduced soon which will comply with regulations on investments returns as laid by S.E.C & C.B.N.Treasureline Interlink Ltd has healthy relationships with several banks, government agencies and business conglomerates home and abroad which is why till date it remains the choice of the investors.With the newly acquired Nigerian Security & Exchange Commission license, Treasureline will broaden its frontiers by venturing into more sectors of trade/humanity services like, Hospitality, Health, Real estate, Printing, Manufacturing, Energy generation & distribution. Treasureline Interlink Ltd, having investments in these sectors will further ensure that its vision of even wealth distribution is achieved by empowering subscribers through the many schemes it presently operates thereby making living in Nigeria attractive and discourage the clamor for overseas visas.
QUOTED VERBATIM FROM TREASURELINE INTERLINK

HOW WONDERBANKS CAN LEGALIZE

NEW MINIMUM PAID-UP CAPITAL FOR CAPITAL MARKET OPERATORS

S/N CATEGORY OF OPERATOR NEW MINIMUM PAID- UP CAPITAL
1 ISSUING HOUSE 2 billion
2 BROKER/DEALER 1 billion
3 TRUSTEES 40 million
4 FUND/PORTFOLIO MANAGER 500 million
5 CORPORATE INVESTMENT ADVISER 5 million
6 REGISTRARS 500 million
7 RATING AGENCY 20 million
8 CORPORATE SUB-BROKER 50 million
9 UNDERWRITER 2 billion
10 MARKET MAKER 2 billion
11 CONSULTANT (INDIVIDUAL) 500,000
12 CONSULTANT (PARTNERSHIP) 2 million
13 CONSULTANT (CORPORATE) 5 million
14 INDIVIDUAL INVESTMENT ADVISER 500,000
15 VENTURE CAPITAL MANAGER 20 million
16 COMMODITIES BROKER 40 million
17 CAPITAL TRADE POINT 20 million
18 STOCK/COMMODITIES EXCHANGE 500 million
19 CLEARING & SETTLEMENT AGENCY 1 billion
20 RECEIVING BANKER As stipulated by CBN 2 billion

NOTE:FLAGSHIP ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD APPLIED FOR CORPORATE INVESTMENT ADVISER(5MILLION NAIRA) & TREASURELINE INTERLINK LTD APPLIED FOR FUND MANAGER(500 MILLION NAIRA) .BOTH OF THEM ARE ON SEC'S LIST OF INTENDING MARKET OPERATOR.

WRITTEN BY ADENIYI ADEONOJOBI

WARNING ON NMF BANK PRIVATE PLACEMENT

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

PUBLIC NOTICE


PRIVATE PLACEMENT ISSUE OF 80 MILLION ORDINARY SHARES OF NOMEX MICRO FINANCE BANK LIMITED

This is to inform the general public that the private placement issue of 80 million ordinary shares of N1.00 each at N1.50 per share by Nomex Micro Finance Bank Limited has not been endorsed by us, as it does not fall within the regulatory authority of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) being a private placement by a private limited liability company. The Commission regulates only private placements by public limited liability companies.

The investing public is hereby advised that any investment in the offer is entirely at the investors’ risk. Please note.



Management

WEALTH SOLUTION PUBLIC NOTICE

This was published on Nigerian Tribune,Friday 31 August,2007
This is to thank all our subcribers for keeping faith with us and for the infinite trust they have in the ability of Wealth Solution Ltd to productively manage funds. We assure them that we will never disappoint them. For now,we wish to formally announce the temporary suspension of all our activities.
The main reason for this is the on-going probe of our activities by regulatory authorities. Our offices will remain closed to subscribers during this time.This,we believe,will hasten the exercise and ensure thoroughness. We implore our subcribers to discountenance what romour mongers are saying.
We are serious investors and we do not have any plan to runaway with funds belonging to our subscribers. These funds were placed with us on trust. We do not intend to betray this trust. It is therefore imperative that our subscribers should exercise some patience. We are still committed to the upliftment of the quality of lives of Nigerians despite all odds. We pledge to be back stronger shortly by God's grace.
We surely shall keep them posted as events unfold.

Thanks.
Signed
Management

PYRAMIDS OF FORTUNE

TWO TYPES OF PYRAMIDS
There are two types of pyramid schemes: one legitimate and the other illegitimate.

legal pyramids

The legitimate pyramid structure is often called a multi level marketing (MLM) organization. Its primary purpose of an MLM is to sell a product. There are many successful MLMs which sell encyclopaedias, soaps and cosmetics, among other items.. The return or earnings to the upper levels of the pyramid are from both the sale of the product and the recruiting of new salespersons. The return is generated from both one's own commission sales and also the commissions on sales of those one recruits.
Illegal Pyramids
In an illegitimate pyramid, the primary return to the upper level individuals is from recruiting of new levels rather than from the sale of a product. In this structure, the return is derived from recruiting others and not from commissions on the sale of any product. The illegitimate pyramid is often referred to as a Ponzi scheme, named after Charles Ponzi, an immigrant to Boston in 1919.
Ponzi Traded in Postage Stamps
Ponzi traded in pre paid postage coupons. He would purchase low rate coupons … and then sell them at a profit ... Desiring to leverage his own purchasing power, he solicited funds from investors, promising them a 40% return in three months. Unfortunately, there were not enough coupons in existence to support his large scale purchases. However, he continued to solicit and receive orders. Ponzi paid some of the investors their promised 40% return from funds collected from later investors. The scheme was perpetuated by the success stories of the payments to the original investors. According to the records, Ponzi made an investment of $50 of his own funds and fleeced $10 million from investors.
Robbing Peter to Pay Paul
The distinguishing feature of a Ponzi type pyramid is that old victims are paid back with funds received from new victims. As long as the fraud continues to grow, the investors are not usually aware that their money has been misappropriated. Most Ponzi schemes are uncovered when new "investors" can no longer be located. All Ponzi schemes, therefore, are pyramids. But not all pyramids are Ponzi schemes.
Entry Fees
Another distinction between legitimate and illegitimate pyramids is the entry fee. In a legitimate pyramid, the entry fee is generally small and used for acquiring a stock of inventory to be sold. In an illegitimate pyramid, however, the entry fees tend to be large and these fees are, in part, passed on to the recruiter.
The Return on Investment
A third difference between the two types of pyramids is the return one can expect. If it appears to be a "get rich quick" scheme, it probably is not legitimate. Abnormally high yields or returns for the amount of effort required is a tell tale sign of an illegitimate pyramid. In these cases, the sales pitch to the unsuspecting victim is that he will earn large amounts without much effort; all he has to do is recruit others to the program.
Golden Rules
The golden rules of illegitimate pyramids are as follows:
1. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
2. Does the investment return sound better than what is offered in the marketplace?
3. Is the investor encouraged to reinvest the profits rather than take a payout?
4. The focus is on recruiting others, not the sale of a product.
5. Who endorsed the product, not the investment return?
6. The entry fee is large and no product (or little inventory) is received.
Generally, illegal pyramid schemes collapse of their own weight. The schemes often are not reported and, therefore, not prosecuted because individuals are embarrassed to admit that they were fleeced by a con artist. The illegitimate recruiter can be anyone: a friend, relative, neighbour, work peer, church member, or someone not known.
ADAPTED FROM MARK R. SIMMONS' PONZI SCHEME

THE TRUTH ABOUT DOUBLERS

In 1919 Charles Ponzi invited business men and women to invest in his business and promised to double their money. Returns were guaranteed. Charles Ponzi recruited new investors and used their funds to pay earlier investors. Unsustainable, the business eventually collapsed leaving a great number of people with nothing to show for the funds they had committed.
Charles Ponzi was imprisoned and from that day, scams that mimicked this approach became known as ‘ponzi schemes’.In more recent times, many of these types of schemes go by the name of ‘Doublers’, ‘Triplers’, 'Bubbles', 'Cyclers', 'Gifting' and other variations. When this article uses the term ‘Doubler’ it is referring to a scheme that operates in the same way as a ‘ponzi’ scheme.
However, this article is not suggesting that all schemes including the name ‘Doubler’ are ponzi schemes.If you have joined, or are considering joining, a money doubler program, study it carefully to see if it operates as a ponzi scheme.Some ponzi schemes provide you with a product or service in exchange for your investment in a bid to achieve the appearance of legitimacy.
Don’t be fooled! If a program promises all investors a complete return on their investment without limiting the number of applicants, this program is almost certain to collapse.Legitimate enterprises will limit the number of investors or require members to achieve their own sales. A legitimate enterprise will never guarantee a profit.
Illegal
The laws of the country you live in may prohibit running, or investing in, a ponzi scheme. Owning a ponzi scheme, investing in a ponzi scheme or permitting a ponzi scheme to be promoted through your website or advertising network, may be illegal.Remember, ponzi schemes rarely use the word ‘ponzi’ in their name. ‘Doubler’, ‘Tripler’, ‘Cycler’ are all common euphemisms for this kind of operation. Before investing in any program, examine it carefully to see how income will be generated.If you knowingly involve yourself with a ponzi scheme, you run the risk of losing your investment, damaging your reputation, or even legal action.
Immoral
The modern Internet Marketer may well be familiar with Doubler programs and how they operate.Some Internet Marketers have written ill-advised articles that demonstrate the best way to profit from money doubler programs without losing your investment. Usually this runs along the lines of ‘join a program early and withdraw your funds before the program collapses’, effectively using Doublers as a form of gambling.Putting aside the obvious financial risks of such an approach, this view selfishly ignores the large number of people who will lose their investment from the program.When a Doubler program collapses, everyone who invested last loses their investment. In some cases this can affect hundreds or even thousands of people. Sadly, many of these will assume that it was the individual program, rather than the concept, that was to blame and will try again with a new program.It doesn’t take a mathematical genius to work out that if you put any number in a calculator and multiply the result by 2 over and over, the number grows exponentially. Even the most avidly promoted Doubler will collapse when the number of new investors required to sustain the program becomes unachievable.If you are tempted to speculate on these programs, please remember this one important point:
The money you receive comes ultimately from the people that lose their investment
And, unlike gambling, many of these people were unaware that their investment was at risk.If you involve yourself with a Doubler program with full knowledge of how they work, you are giving your approval to a fraudulent operation that is tantamount to theft. Would you steal your neighbours television set because they accidentally left their front door unlocked? Would you knowingly purchase stolen goods?If your answer is ‘Yes’ then this article probably means nothing to you. If the answer is ‘No’ then ask yourself why you would give your approval to a Doubler program. If you are intelligent enough to understand how Doublers work, you are intelligent enough to make an honest income online. Build your own website. Provide an online service. Sell affiliate products. There are a vast number of legitimate business opportunities available to you without resorting to the underhand tactics used by operators of Doubler programs.If this article can persuade even a few people to leave these programs alone, then it will have been worthwhile.
THIS POST ARE OPINIONS OF THE AUTHOR DAVID CONGREAVE

FAMOUS LETTER OF DR. DOUGLAS JACKSON TO EGOLD USERS

e-gold has recently been the subject of a slanderous and unfounded article in Business Week. e-gold strongly refutes the allegations and presumptions of this article. The article chose to focus through anecdote and suspicion only on an exception - criminal abuse - and ignores the overwhelming majority of e-gold usage.
It also fails to note that all online payment mechanisms including credit cards and intermediaries such as PayPal are targeted by criminals, likely at a much greater magnitude than e-gold, and fails to relate the very proactive steps e-gold takes to eliminate any criminal behavior involving e-gold.e-gold and its Operator, Gold & Silver Reserve (G&SR), including G&SR's exchange service OmniPay in cooperation with the United States Government and pursuant to a lawfully issued written request, did allow an examination of the e-gold and OmniPay computer systems and data. The examination occurred on December 16th after normal business hours so as to avoid disrupting access to the system. The examination utilized the full resources of e-gold's system and prevented customer access.
We were told by the government examiners that the outage would be for a few hours, however, due to the volume of data maintained by e-gold for its customers' protection, a surprise to the examiners, the examination occupied e-gold's computing capacity for 36 hours. e-gold apologizes for any inconvenience of the system down time caused by the government's request. No charges have been filed against e-gold, G&SR, OmniPay or any of its principals.e-gold operates legally and does not condone persons attempting to use e-gold for criminal activity. e-gold has a long history of cooperation with law enforcement agencies in the US and worldwide, providing data and investigative assistance in response to lawful requests. I'm proud of what we have accomplished so far with e-gold. e-gold, now in its 10th year online, is growing exponentially because of a network effect, a global cascade of Users telling their friends who then tell their friends. For the first time since our launch in 1996, this growth is providing the revenue and resources needed for e-gold to accelerate technical development and other refinements to make it more reliable and even less hospitable to those who would seek to abuse it. We are processing the same volume of transactions and growing at the same exponential pace that PayPal was in the second quarter of 2000.
One difference, though, is that they had to give away $tens of millions of their investors' money to build a critical mass of user balances and were continuing a burn rate of about $10 million per month during this period. Altogether they burned through about $275 million of capital losses before their IPO.e-gold, in contrast, lacking significant outside investment:has attained a circulation larger than Canada 's official gold reserves (currently 3.46 metric tonnes of gold, equivalent to about $55 million at current exchange rates). has web traffic surpassing etrade.com and citi.com and is neck and neck with kitco.com as the most heavily trafficked gold related site on the Web settles 50 to 60 thousand user-to-user payments per day, a daily value of about $10 million has active Users in every country, (including more than 150,000 in China ) despite our lack so far of foreign language versions - a high priority on our to-do list e-gold is the only payment mechanism that is truly global, enabling any merchant to accept payment online even if the payer lives in a third world country, has no credit card, or is perhaps 'unbanked' altogether.e-gold enables the migrant worker of modest means to send value back to his family in Mexico or Bangladesh at a fraction of the cost of conventional international remittance mechanisms. e-gold alone is free of chargeback risk, yet the fee for receiving payment in e-gold is a tiny fraction of those charged by any other systems.
Thanks to e-gold, for the first time in history, normal people of modest means worldwide have the option of using currency that is designed from the ground up to be immune to debasement, with a governance model that precludes even its management and founders from having the power to subvert it.Gold & Silver Reserve has been operating for over nine years. Seeking to comply with every applicable law, G&SR has reached out to the Government dozens of times, has repeatedly met with officials from the Internal Revenue Service, the FBI, SEC and a variety of other Federal agencies, and has been told – in no uncertain terms – that we were operating legally and in full compliance with all laws, rules and regulations. Additionally, the Government has requested from us – on more than three hundred occasions – information regarding individuals it believed to be lawbreakers. Gold & Silver Reserve complied with every single request in a professional and timely fashion. Numerous Government officials have gone so far as to commend us in writing for our efforts in complying with their requests and aiding them in their investigations.
Very recently, however, the Government concluded that it was unable to “regulate” our business under any current statutes or regulations. Rather than moving Congress to enact legislation, the Government apparently chose to undertake to regulate us under pre-existing statutes which are totally and utterly inapplicable to our business. To do so, the case the Government brought against Gold & Silver Reserve centered around false statements and fabrications made to a Magistrate Judge in Washington , D.C. A week later, when challenged by that Judge, the Government, fearing it would lose its case filed a second suit against Gold & Silver Reserve. We are now addressing that action and are confident that we will be victorious in a very short time. Both OmniPay and e-gold have been substantially harmed. Both sites were off-line altogether for 36 hours - an interval during which we were at a loss to know what to announce or even how to announce it.
There were other direct interventions as well that I am not yet at liberty to discuss that nearly crippled OmniPay's ability to honor its obligations to and on behalf of users. The worst effect of course is on our reputation. This irresponsible smear piece will surely impair our efforts to build strategic relationships with the host of businesses and individuals that would benefit from an embrace of e-gold. Let me be very clear. e-gold in no manner condones persons or organizations attempting to use e-gold to support criminal acts. The exact opposite is true. e-gold limits accounts that are suspect of illicit activity and has a long history of cooperation with law enforcement agencies.
There are two elements that make e-gold about the dumbest choice a criminal could make if seeking to obfuscate a money trail or otherwise hide the proceeds of crime.it is impossible for a general user of e-gold to send/add money (value in any form) into the system... he can only get e-gold by receiving an e-gold Spend from someone who already has some. there's a permanent record of all transfers, that is, a permanent record of the entire lineage of every particle of value in the e-gold system. There is nothing "anonymous and untraceable" about e-gold. e-gold Spends settle by book entry - it isn't so-called "digital cash".e-gold is not about crime. e-gold is not a hospitable environment for criminals. e-gold maintains an efficient and highly capable investigative staff to aid in the identification, apprehension and prosecution of any criminal abusing the system. Our staff has participated in hundreds of investigations supporting the FBI, FTC, IRS, DEA, SEC, USPS, and others.
This is the reality of every payment system, the need to aid in rooting out criminal abuse, whether it is child pornographers taking advantage of the multiple layers and indirection of credit card middlemen, or smurfs aggregating cash via international remittance processors or even state lotteries.e-gold has taken a proactive approach, reaching out to law enforcement agencies and NGO's (Non-Governmental Organization) to foster closer cooperation in combating crime online. For example, e-gold is a charter member of the Financial Coalition to eradicate Child Pornography, organized by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, along with Visa, MasterCard, Microsoft, AOL, PayPal, First Data and some of the major banks. I hope to have additional and useful facts shortly and will communicate them when appropriate. I can assure you e-gold is up and running, supporting its customers, and continuing to grow.
Dr. Douglas Jackson.