Paying out up to twenty-five per cent per month to individuals who make large investments could be a simple Ponzi scheme, whereby old investors are paid with the funds contributed by the new victims. It could also be a much darker form of illicit commerce; Jamaica is one of the Western Hemisphere's sources of high-grade forms of marijuana, which sells on the global market at extremely high prices. Could some of this money be subsidising crime, a form of "factoring" of future drug profits? We cannot say, but the hue and cry from the Jamaican financial and legal community should certainly be heeded. This is dangerous ground for investors.

Here is a list of the unregulated high-yield investment schemes, as reported by the Financial Services Commission. Some are reportedly involved in litigation with the regulator. Are some of these so-called "funds" moving cash abroad, and will you encounter it in international funds transfers, or disguised institutional investments? This is a real possibility, and for those reasons, it is prudent to become familiar with these names:

• Caribbean Real Estate Investment Fund, a/k/a CAREIF

• World Wise Partners Limited

• Swiss Cash

• Higgins Warner Music and Entertainment

• MayDaisy E-Partner Plan Club

• A3 Union

• Wealth Builder and Associates

• Right Vision E-Partners Members Club

• Strategical Alliance Investment Company

• SGL Holdings

• Partner Financials

• Kingdom investments Unlimited International a/k/a KIUI

• Image Consultants & Services

• Nipo Farms

• USIMO

• Cash Plus Group

• OLINT Corp. Limited

• Overseas Locket International Corp.

For Further Information: http://www.fscjamaica.org/

NOTE:  This information is based solely upon official regulatory warnings filed by the FSC, and there is no evidence publicly available incriminating any of listed companies, some of whom have denied the allegations, and are litigating the issue in a court of competent jurisdiction. No inference of violation of any law should be drawn from their appearance on the FSC list. None of these companies have been reported convicted in a court of law of criminal charges, or had a judgment entered in a civil proceeding.