Bogus bank in China scams people of over 200 million yuan

[Hydra]

Looks just like the real thing: bogus bank in China scams people of over 200 million yuan

The ‘bank’ was designed like a real one, boasting LED screens and counter staff

PUBLISHED : Friday, 23 January, 2015, 1:10pm
UPDATED : Friday, 23 January, 2015, 1:34pm

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The fake bank in Nanjing's Pukou district, Jiangsu province, promised customers 2 per cent interest a week for their deposits. Photo: Nanjing Broadcast Station

A fake bank in China that looked exactly like a real bank managed to scam people of almost 200 million yuan (HK$253 million) worth of deposits in just a year, Xinhua reported on Thursday.

The “bank”, in Nanjing’s Pukou district in Jiangsu province, promised customers 2 per cent interest a week for their deposits. Almost 200 people were conned.

One businessman from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, deposited 12 million dollars from his company, but stopped receiving interest for the money after just four weeks.

He went to the police after travelling to Nanjing from Hangzhou and trying in vain to get his money back.

Police investigations revealed that the “bank” – although designed to look just like a real one, with LED screens and counters manned by people dressed like bank staff – did not have the permits required to operate as a financial institution. Rather, it branded itself as a “cooperative”.

Police detained four people involved in the operation.