A Report by CYS Global Remit Legal & Compliance Office
A 71-year-old individual in Singapore narrowly avoided losing S$1.5 million (US$1.12 million) in an investment scam, thanks to the intervention of Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) and the Singapore police's Anti-Scam Centre (ASC).
According to a press release on Tuesday (Jan 16), the police disclosed that the man initially made a payment on investments presented by a foreign acquaintance. Encouraged by the promise of quick returns, the man progressively transferred large sums to different bank accounts as instructed by the scammer.
Through analysis and detection, the Anti-Scam Centre and Standard Chartered Bank identified the transfers made from the victim's bank account. Subsequently, the Anti-Scam Centre sent an SMS notification to the victim to caution him about scams, while the bank's anti-fraud team suspended his digital banking access and reached out to him.
Despite an interview with the bank's relationship manager regarding the purpose of the transactions, the victim remained unconvinced that it was a scam. However, based on identified red flags, the case was referred to the Anti-Scam Centre. Officers promptly engaged with the victim and successfully convinced him about the fraudulent nature of the scheme. As a result of the timely intervention by ASC and SCB officers, the victim was spared potential losses amounting to approximately S$1.5 million.
Organisations like CYS Global Remit consistently plays a significant role by implementing various measures before transactions. These measures include verifying the sender-beneficiary relationship, understanding the purpose of remittance, evaluating the economic rationale behind the transaction, and scrutinizing the source of funds and wealth.
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