If it sounds too good to be true...

Richard Cayne giving people advice on how not to get ripped off! Oh, what priceless irony!

http://richardcayne.net/if-it-sounds-too-good-to-be-true-it-may-be-a-ponzi-scheme/

According to the article, here are the warning signs that investors need to be aware of:

High returns on investments with seemingly no risk. Even under normal conditions, a yield over 5% to 8% may seem incredible. To get 200%, with a guarantee, is most likely a Ponzi scheme.

This is food for thought - especially considering that Richard Cayne told me that Royal Siam Trust was such a good investment that I could "double or even triple" my money. Your words, Mr. Cayne, not mine.

• Regulations are often the bane of investors, but they are there for your protection. If you deal with an unregistered or unlicensed dealer or investment, there’s no way for you to confirm their legitimacy, and you’ll definitely have less recourse when things go wrong.

It's kind of like doing business with an investment advisor in Japan who abruptly shuts down operations there and runs moves away to Bangkok, Thailand after getting sanctioned by the competent  authorities at the FSA. It's definitely true that Royal Siam Trust investors have no recourse whatsoever now that the guy who sold it to them is living in Thailand. I guess their only "recourse" now is to have faith that the same person who got them into this mess will somehow get them out of it.

• You get great looking statements showing how your investment has grown, but you can’t find out exactly how this is happening and can’t get your hands on that money easily. It’s still your money, so you should be able to track your funds, and, if necessary, withdraw from or close your account depending on the nature of the investment and asset class.

Whatever happened to the www.royalsiamtrust.com website? And didn't Richard Cayne tell his clients that they could resell their "units" in Royal Siam Trust early if need be?

Hmm. Something seems fishy here.