In September this year, the Lianhua County government issued the "Notice on the Investigation of Advertising and Information for Suspected Illegal Fundraising," which specifically warned against platforms such as Yunlianhui and Maidianshangcheng. At the same time, Zhuzhou, Jinan, Huarong County, and Wenshan Prefecture also issued similar warnings.

What has happened so far: On October 28, netizens reported that Maidianshangcheng had not allowed withdrawals for two months. One user, who had invested a modest amount but had recruited many downlines who were now demanding money, said he felt like jumping off a building. Online searches also revealed others reporting the possibility of the platform fleeing.

Around the same time, the Chun'an County Market Supervision Administration and the Xiangyang Yicheng Office for Preventing and Handling Illegal Fundraising issued risk alerts. To mitigate potential risks and protect people's property, these authorities actively intervened, conducting special inspections on high-consumption rebate platforms to squeeze their survival space.

In recent years, the consumption rebate model, represented by "Internet + physical stores," has emerged in many cities across the country and spread to rural areas. This sales model typically involves an internet third-party platform mediating transactions between merchants and consumers, promising partial rebates on spending or offering equivalent points for cash purchases, thereby inducing consumers to register as members and merchants to join the platform.

However, such consumption rebate models violate the laws of market economy, and their capital operations cannot be sustained long-term. Once the capital chain breaks, participants' funds face great risk. In June 2012, Zhejiang's "Wanjia Shopping" platform collapsed overnight, involving 24.045 billion yuan, leaving加盟 merchants and consumers with huge debts. The currently popular platforms like "Maidianshangcheng" and "Yunlianhui" are similar to "Wanjia Shopping" and have evolved into new fundraising scams.

Previously, the Lianhua County Office for Preventing and Handling Illegal Fundraising discovered that some local merchants operated using a sales model based on Maidianshangcheng, using "silver fruits" as a medium. These merchants first joined Maidianshangcheng, then had customers deposit cash or receive silver fruits through consumption gifts. These silver fruits could be converted daily at a certain rate, and the converted silver fruits could be cashed out or used for shopping. This business model is suspected of being a "consumption rebate" scheme, and the silver fruits are essentially suspected to be "virtual currency."

Maidianshangcheng claims to be an innovative enterprise headquartered in Chaoyang District, Beijing, and describes itself as a large alliance of Internet plus physical stores. It says it unites quality merchants from different industries at the county level to form a cross-industry alliance, achieving resource sharing and mutual benefit. Silver fruits can circulate among different physical stores.

According to communications between the county office staff and some merchants and participating consumers, they all know this is a high-risk business model. Local merchants during promotion claimed that Maidianshangcheng would definitely not survive, but it would not collapse before the end of 2018, and their principal would be recovered in about three and a half months, so there was no risk. The participating consumers have a gambler's mentality, betting that the company can hold out for more than three and a half months so they can recover their principal, after which they would earn profits.

It is understood that Maidianshangcheng has 1.4 million加盟 merchants and 70 million members, involving a wide range of people.

Relevant departments remind: Please recognize the illegality and risk of the above platforms and their operating models, resist and refuse to participate, and prevent damage to your own interests.

Source: Internet

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