Pyramid scheme: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 19:39, 25 February 2025

Revision as of 19:45, 25 February 2025

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In March 2017, Ufun Store, registered as an online business for its members as a direct-sales company, was declared to be operating a pyramid scheme in Thailand. The Criminal Court handed down prison terms totaling 12,265 to 12,267 years to 22 people convicted over the scheme, which conned about 120,000 people out of more than 20&nbsp;billion baht.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Ufun fraudsters sentenced to thousands of years|url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/1219257/ufun-fraudsters-sentenced-to-thousands-of-years|access-date=2020-08-08|newspaper=Bangkok Post|date=22 March 2017 }}</ref>

The Airplane Game scheme resurfaced in 2020 as a savings club by the name of the Blessing Loom, Blessing Circle, Sending Flower, Gifting Flower, and so on. It is also misrepresented as a [[Susu (informal loan club)|Sou-Sou]], a legitimate savings club model where the number of people paying into the pot is fixed and each person gets a payout on a regular basisregularly. This is distinct from the pyramid scheme variation making use of the hierarchical flower model,<ref>{{Cite web|title=BE AWARE: 'Blessing Loom' scam is resurfacing on social media|url=https://www.cbs19.tv/article/news/local/be-aware-blessing-loom-scam-is-resurfacing-on-social-media/501-63996499-0136-4203-8c7e-2e6221bf5fe4|access-date=2020-08-08|website=cbs19.tv|date=21 April 2020 |language=en-US}}</ref> where new members are continually recruited into the group by people at the edges of the flower. This re-imagining of the old Airplane/8-ball model is making a resurgence on social media platforms such as [[Instagram]] and Zoom.<ref>{{cite web|title=Blessing Loom Ponzi Scam: Beware|url=https://www.onlinethreatalerts.com/article/2020/4/20/blessing-loom-ponzi-scam/|website=OnlineThreatAlerts.com|access-date=2020-07-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title='Blessing looms' pyramid scheme sweeps across Houston|url=https://www.click2houston.com/news/2016/12/08/blessing-looms-pyramid-scheme-sweeps-across-houston/|website=Click2Houston.com|date=8 December 2016 |access-date=2020-07-07}}</ref>

==See also==