24/11/2023 (Singapore) - Singapore-based investment company Temasek Holdings has issued a warning about a scam in China involving individuals impersonating agents of the firm’s Shenzhen office. The company revealed that scammers are falsely claiming to represent "Temasek Holdings Advisors (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd." / "淡马锡投资咨询 (深圳) 有限公司" to sell financial investment products or instruments.
Temasek, with a net portfolio value of 382 billion Singapore dollars ($284.5 billion) as of March 31, is a prominent state-owned investment entity in Singapore, operating alongside the sovereign wealth fund GIC. The company is known for its active investment strategies and has established a significant presence in China, with offices in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, among its global network of 13 offices in nine countries.
In their statement, Temasek clarified that the scam involves fraudsters soliciting money from individuals under the guise of representing their Shenzhen office, with false promises of paying back with commissions. The company emphatically stated that these activities are not linked to Temasek in any way. They further asserted that they do not directly sell any investment products or financial instruments in China and have not authorized any third parties to do so on their behalf.
Temasek also stressed its intention to take legal action against any entities or individuals found to be impersonating the company or infringing on its intellectual property.
This warning from Temasek comes amid broader concerns over counterfeit and fraudulent activities in China. From fake branded stores to counterfeit goods including food and medicine, China has been grappling with issues of forgery and scams. In a related development, the Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported that Myanmar has extradited 31,000 suspects to China as part of a crackdown on phone fraud schemes targeting Chinese citizens, originating from northern Myanmar.