Wealthy Hongkongers are being targeted by suspicious brokers offering to sell them enormous quantities of gold sourced from Thai royalty but then demanding access to their banking details before showing proof the bullion exists.
The brokers claim to have access to up to 5,000 tonnes of gold, which they say they are selling on behalf of the Thai royal family.
Police, local banks and private investigators say the trend could be a new spin on an old form of fraud.
Hong Kong is a prime target for the scam, given its many billionaires and the lust for gold as a hedge against a tumbling US dollar. It appears to be feeding on uncertainty over the future of Thailand after the reign of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who is 81 and in poor health.
A financial adviser to Hong Kong's ultra-wealthy said that he was approached by three brokers. He became suspicious when they asked for his clients' banking details. The amounts on offer are also dubious. Even the International Monetary Fund owns only 3,217 tonnes of gold, according to its website. The central government has 1,054 tonnes.
'These people seemed unconnected. They were from different continents. Their stories, however, were the same,' the adviser said.
