If it’s too good to be true, it probably is

Last week a reader emailed me letting me know about a call he received from someone with a Delhi phone number.

The caller claimed to be with a big financial institution and said that they have a scheme going which works as follows:

  1. Invest Rs. 50,000 upfront, and get a 5 gram gold coin free.
  2. Get Rs. 115,000 as full and final settlement after 5 years.

A 5 gram gold coin is worth ~ Rs. 11,000, so effectively  you’re investing Rs. 39,000 and getting Rs. 115,000 at the end of 5 years, which translates into an excellent return of about 24% annually.

The reader insisted that they mail him the details or email him because he was suspicious, and rightly so, and the caller said that he can’t send him the details because it’s a secret offer only for a chosen few!

The caller hung up after repeated insistence of seeing any paperwork, and it sure looks like a con game to me.

Have you been approached by an offer like this, what do you make of it?

5 thoughts on “If it’s too good to be true, it probably is”

  1. Hahaha, secret offer :))

    Manshu, I’ve been trying to convey this to people since forever now. If somebody is trying really hard to sell you something, NEVER buy it. Always ask for an email with the offer details. I keep getting these calls and I keep asking for the soft copy of the offer but haven’t received any document ever.

    Ram Kasam, the day I receive a document, I’ll tear it apart on my blog 🙂

Leave a Reply to Smart Singh Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *