|
|
 |
 |
| Sunday, 27 June 2004 |
 |
|
 |
Business |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Customer awareness on credit cards vital - Exchange Controller The Controller of Exchange has informed all banks who issue credit cards to make the customers aware of the rules applying to credit cards and the punshiments which will be inflicted in the event of violating such rules. Under the Exchange Control act any person violating the rules can be fined upto three times the value of the transaction, said the Controller of Exchange H.A.P. Hettiarachchi. According to information received by him there have been several instances where credit cards have been used to pay large sums of monies to companies which have launched quick money making schemes in the country. There have been thousands of such transactions in the recent past and we are investigating each and every one to see whether there has been a violation of the act. Most persons have paid such monies on behalf of others and it is an offence under the Exchange Control Act. He said that a person can use his own credit card to import goods worth US$ 3000 for personal use on a monthly basis. But if it exceeds that sum or he uses the credit card to pay on behalf of others it violates credit card regulations as well as the exchange control act. Persons who use their credit cards on behalf of others violate the clause 5(1) of the Exchange control Act. He said that he has made a complaint to the Colombo Fraud Bureau to investigate the pyramid scheme launched by Gold Quest International as there have been several inquiries from the public. According to a press notice issued by the Central Bank a variant of pyramid schemes are those which purport to sell a product or products. The products may often be sold at an inflated price which may include teh value of a product and a premium which would motivate the purchaser to canvass more recruits to the scheme with the intention of earning more commissions. This type of scheme is deceptive and misleading and the participants in a pyramid whether they realise it or not can be deceived at any stage as the scheme can run collapse in the event it runs out of members. When the schme collapses the majority of the members mostly those who are at the lower levels mostly the new recruits to the scheme. They would not only lose the anticipated commissions but also be left with substantially overvalued products. Director Department of Supervision of Non Bank financial Institutions Mrs Gunatillaka said that Government is in the process of introducing specific legislation to ban pyramid frauds to protect the public from the dangers of participating in such schemes. Heavy penalties will be imposed on such schemes she added. (S.G.) |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
