November 16,2022

Folashade Owoeye, a Lagos-based retiree, has narrated how BOLDGAINS Investment platform took her N132,000 and refused to give her the promised return.

Owoeye said she decided to try the platform when she needed to change her phone but couldn’t afford to do so, and that Pastor Jennifer Balogun, one of the admin officers of the investment platform, said she would be getting twice her investment

Two weeks ago, I received a post about BOLDGAINS investment from a friend, but I didn’t pay attention to it because I am usually wary of investments like this,” she told FIJ.

“Things got to a point when I needed to change my phone but I couldn’t afford it, and then I remembered the investment post. I made enquiries about the investment and I was assured it wasn’t a scam, and that I would get my money.

“Other people who were also on the platform gave their reviews and said it was the best.”

Owoeye said that by 6 am the following day, Balogun had woken her from sleep, pressuring her into the investment. She said Balogun also promised that she would get N200,000 in three hours once she invested.

“The following day, around 6 am, Balogun woke me up with the pressure to invest. She said I would get N200,000 after three hours of investing. When I asked where the money was coming from, she said it was from a store in Dubai where trading took place.

“She said my investment would be used to trade, and as an alternative, she could send some goods from the store to me if I wanted to sell them myself, but if I couldn’t sell them, BOLDGAINS would help me sell.

“Balogun even said that when I got my proceeds, my husband would join me in the investment. I trusted her because she had posed as a clergy woman.”

The Lagos-based retiree said that ten minutes after she invested N100,000 with the platform on November 2, Daniel Oluposi, another officer from BOLDGAINS Investment, called her, asking that she add N150,000 to the initial N100,000 so she could get her proceeds.

“I immediately called Balogun and her response threw me off. She said she was just an admin officer who had completed her part of the investment process. She stated that paying the N150,000 was part of the game plan and that I should pay it if I wanted my money,” said Owoeye.

Owoeye said that after complaining on the platform, she was directed to Emmanuel Okorie, another BOLDGAINS admin officer, who was said to be the chief admin officer of the investment platform in Dubai. Okorie asked her to pay N10,650 into three separate wallets so as to recover her money.

“When I contacted him, he said there were some wallets I needed to pay into. He asked that I pay N10,650 into each of them so I could retrieve my money immediately,

“I paid the money, N32,000 in total, into a Palmpay account via Wema Bank. All I wanted was to retrieve my money, but nothing came forth.

“The N132,000 I invested brought nothing back. BOLDGAINS operate like a syndicate, as they kept passing me from one person to the other.”

BOLDGAINS RESPONDS

FIJ spoke with all the personnel from BOLDGAINS investment who transacted with Owoeye except Jennifer.

Daniel Oluposi, one of the company’s admin staff, said BOLDGAINS would pay twice the capital. He also stated that Owoeye could not get a refund because she had paid to the company and not to him.

“Investing in BOLDGAINS without getting paid is not true. Nobody will tell you they invested and did not get paid. And you don’t get double because we are not money doublers,” he said.

“When she came, she went to pay to another wrong person when we were telling her what was going on. It is her fault this is happening.

“She said she paid N100,000-N132,000 to us. Is that how they do business? You paid to somebody and you went to contact someone else and made payment to them. How does she expect to get paid?

“Even the product they want to bring for her, they haven’t brought the first one and she is already expecting the next one.

“She made payments to two people. We are aware of it, but it was from her ignorance. I called her to explain that we have more demands for the product than what is available but she did not listen.

“If she wants a refund, she should go to the company, because that was where she paid to. She didn’t pay to me.

Okorie, the chief admin officer of BOLDGAINS, denied defrauding Owoeye. He said all he asked her to do was upgrade her wallet with N25,650 in three places so she could get credited.

“We don’t dupe anyone at BOLDGAINS Investment. If you invest, you will get paid,” she said.

“She was asked to meet certain requirements, which she refused. She told me she invested N100,000 with someone and couldn’t get her money.

“I told her I was going to help her but she had to meet the requirements.

“For the requirements, I asked her to upgrade her pay wallet because she was credited and the money bounced back to the company’s account.

“I personally tried it but it kept bouncing, and I told her to upgrade her pay wallet with N25,650 in three places before she could get paid.

“I even volunteered to keep paying to upgrade one of the wallets so as to ease things for her.

“I didn’t dupe her as she claimed.”

Festus Adewale, another officer from BOLDGAINS Investment, denied knowing Owoeye or transacting with her.

“I don’t know what you are talking about. I don’t know this person in question. I have no idea and can’t provide any information.”

FIJ also called Jennifer Balogun but her number was said to be non-existent.