When talking of several Ponzi schemes that had disappeared with Nigerians' money, 86FB is not the first of its kind. Before the betting platform were Ponzi schemes like Mavrodi Mundial Movement (MMM), Ultimatecycler, Help2Get, Givers Forum, Icharity, Twinkas and so many others.
Unlike MMM which offered 30 per cent returns on investment, Ultimate Cycler, created in 2014, promised to pay a 400 per cent return to its investors within three days. It was a peer-to-peer donation business model created by Peter Wolfing, a United States-based network marketer. The scheme, however, went down in 2016 disappearing with the funds of thousands of customers.
Racksterli is another crashed ponzi which was an investment platform owned by Michael Chidiebere Oti, also known as 'Black Gold'. Following seemingly endorsement by some well-known celebrities, Racksterli eloped with billions of Nigerians' money.
For Help2Get, another Ponzi scheme touted as a “community currency exchange system that helps to gain finance protected through peer-to-peer assistance”, it promised to pay investors 60 per cent ROI in 30 days. However, the platform crashed a year after its existence. Huge money vanished into thin air.
Givers Forum also surfaced in 2016 as a “mutual-aid fund”, assuring its investors of 10 per cent ROI weekly. After several ebbs and flows, the company finally crashed in 2019.
International Charity Club (iCharity Club) surfaced in 2015 in India, Nigeria, Pakistan and some other countries. Members were directed to register, donate to uplines and become “a grade 1 member” in the system. The system would then “find 5 free members and they, in turn, donate to you”. In contrast to some other schemes which eventually failed, iCharity Club still operates “worldwide”.
While 86FB has taken its share of the largesse and vanished, the major question on the lips of some observers is: do Nigerians ever learn? Despite the failures of some Ponzi schemes that carted away billions of naira and destroyed livelihoods, it appears Nigeria remains a fertile ground where a lot of people are desperate to make a fortune from a penny.
When will Nigerians learn their lessons?
Why do Nigerians keep falling for these?
Greed? Or Bad Economy? Or Poor Regulations?
