Cryptocurrency broker Rui Win Capital Group LTD appears to be engaged in fraud against California consumers

The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has received a complaint from at least one California resident regarding a crypto investment.

The victim was introduced to “Enze Zhao” in a WeChat group. Zhao told the victim he was interested in her, and they continued to communicate. The victim gradually fell in love, believing she and Zhaou shared many interests and values.  Zhao told the victim he was an economics major and his hobby is to earn extra money through Rui Win Capitals LTD.  Zhao convinced the victim they had a future together, but wanted her to do better financially, so they could build a house together in the Bay area. Zhao then suggested he could teach the victim to invest Gold Dollars on Meta Trader 5 Trading Platform through Rui Win. She put in $500,000, and Zhao told her she had completed a deal successfully and now had more than a million.  But, she was told she had to pay 20% tax on the profit.

She paid, but still couldn’t get her money back.  Then the Rui Win customer service suggested that if she sent in 10% of her balance, she would become a VIP and get all her money back. 

So, she sent in the 10% of what she thought was her online balance, more than $130,000 believing she would become a VIP. Then the customer service claimed that the platform had stopped functioning and she would have to wait for it to reopen. Meanwhile, Zhao asked her to keep sending him money to help him from getting into trouble, or he would go to jail.  Eventually, Zhao stopped contacting her, she could no longer contact customer service at Rui Win, and she has lost close to $1 million.

This appears to be what is commonly called an “Advance Fee scheme,” which can take many forms, as discussed here:  https://www.fbi.gov/scams-and-safety/common-scams-and-crimes/advance-fee-schemes. This also appears to be what’s known as a Romance Scam, which is described here: https://dfpi.ca.gov/2022/05/20/romance-scams-and-crypto-assets-fact-or-fraud/

The DFPI urges consumers to exercise extreme caution before responding to any solicitation offering investment or financial services.  To check whether an investment or financial service provider is licensed in California, consumers may contact the Department for questions or inquiries at ask.dfpi@dfpi.ca.gov or call toll-free at (866) 275-2677.  If a consumer believes a person or company has violated state law or acted improperly regarding a consumer financial product or service, they may file a formal complaint with the DFPI at https://dfpi.ca.gov/file-a-complaint/.