Foreign exchange investments and the Banilad flyover
In just a few weeks after the dollar pyramiding scam, the foreign exchange investment disaster of PERFORMANCE INVESTMENT PRODUCTS CORPORATION (PIPC), blew up, leaving quite a number of rich Filipinos a few million pesos poorer. It seems the principals/owners of the company, which is Singapore-based, have disappeared together with some $250 million. As of this time, they have not located and only $2 million was left in the corporation coffers. No official amount was mentioned as coming from the
The only good thing about this scam is that it did not hit the small guys, but the people who had at least $40,000, which was the minimum lot to be able to participate in this investment.
Some months ago, I received a call from this company for the funds of one of
What subsequently happened was that their traders were not making money buying and selling foreign exchange; they were even losing money! So, when there were no more new investors coming in, the company could not keep on paying the promised interests, especially since their traders had to keep on putting up margin calls on their highly leveraged trades (they borrowed five to 10 times their capital). The owners/principals, sensing that the situation have very little chance of turning around, decided it was time to disappear.
It was not initially a scam, because it had a legitimate business plan. But the principals were too full of themselves, thinking they could beat the market. Add to it the gunslinging mentality of the traders, it was a disaster waiting to happen.
I did not commit any of the institution’s funds to this investment or to this company, not because I thought it was a scam, but because I thought it was too risky an investment. I had spent time as a foreign exchange trader for a bank, and even spent my lunch hours in the Chicago Board of Trade, and I know the risks. I also did not like the domiciles/addresses of the company which were all tax havens, i.e.,
Some eleven years ago, there was also a proliferation of Foreign Exchange Trading companies/brokers that descended in the
Again, there is a lesson to be learned from all of the above. Do your homework, ask the right questions, ask for expert advice, and don’t be greedy. Preserving your wealth is as important as getting your wealth.
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The BANILAD FLYOVER issue is not at all related to the investment scams. Its just that a number of people had ask me about the issue, and I happen to know of the plans for Banilad road when I was Chairman of MCWD for a number of years. I also happen to live in the Banilad area, so I will be affected with the eventual solution or non-solution.
I had suggested to Mayor Osmeña, Vice Mayor Rama and Cong. del Mar, that the widening of the Banilad road to six(6) lanes as originally envisioned should be pursued before the flyover. This starts from the flyover in Arch. Reyes up to the Ma. Luisa junction, and includes the widening of the
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