If someone tells you that they are doing business as an agent for a cross-border e-commerce platform, they will use your information to register a store and take out a loan of 5 million. More than 10,000 yuan, and the remaining 1.5 million yuan will be handed over to them as operating expenses and payment for goods. The loan will not be repaid by you, but will be deducted from the profit of the store. If the profit is not enough, they will pay the rest. What do you think?

The first reaction of many people must be that there will be no pie in the sky. This is a scam, but I believe that many people will be tempted and plunge into it regardless.

In recent years, the cross-border e-commerce industry has developed rapidly, and many people who have taken advantage of this shareholder style have also made a lot of money. In recent years, the state has continued to increase its support for this industry. Thinking that you can pick up money here and there, this also gives some criminals an opportunity to take advantage.

As a leading cross-border e-commerce website, Amazon has attracted many sellers to participate in recent years, so it has also been used by criminals as a tool to defraud others in some "leek cutting incidents" and "fraud cases".

The matter at the beginning of the article is a new scam that Yien.com recently learned about. At present, people in Linyi, Shandong, Dongguan, Shenzhen, Anhui, and Zhejiang in Guangdong have stepped on the pit. Among them, there are treasure mothers with babies at home, and white-collar workers who work in companies. There are people of various identities and occupations.

Now some people have paid for the business license, but more than half a year has passed, but they have not received any feedback .

In response to this matter, Yien.com also verified with Amazon. Amazon said that they did not authorize any third party to do business. To interpret the official words bluntly, this is a blatant scam.

It is reported that the company "Shandong eBay Pinpin Network Technology Co., Ltd." involved in this case has been seized by the Shandong Linyi police as early as February 2022, and the main culprit, Zhang XX, has also been taken criminal compulsory measures by the police.

Borrowing money from Amazon without paying it back, is the pie falling from the sky?

A few days ago, some people in the industry broke the news to Yien.com that someone was using Amazon loans to defraud.

According to the feedback from the whistleblower, some people said that they are acting as Amazon's agent for store investment promotion, and apply for a loan to Amazon. Stores registered with other people's information will be fully managed and operated by a company called "Amazon Third Branch". Fees and payment will be deducted from the loaned money, and the seller can still make money without paying.

Through the exposed agreement Yien.com found that this matter is not simple, this is a three-party agreement: Party A is the seller, Party B is Amazon (Shanghai) International Trade Co., Ltd., and Party C is the third branch of Amazon.

In the agreement, the content of the entrusted service shows that Party A authorizes Party B and Party C to operate the store on its behalf. Party B shall provide the goods according to the supply price agreed by Party A and Party C, and promise to deliver the goods on time and correctly according to the address provided by Party A and Party C. The ownership of the store and the master control of the store belong to Party B.

Party B and Party C are responsible for the daily operation of the store, such as decoration, promotion, sales, customer service, etc., and bear the related marketing and promotion expenses arising therefrom. service fees and warranty fees for large events ).

One of the rights and obligations of the three parties shows that Party B authorizes Party C to operate Amazon stores for Party A , and Party C promises to operate Party A's stores normally in accordance with Party B's requirements. If the monthly operation of Party A's stores cannot When the monthly instalment amount of Party A's loan from Amazon Real Home is repaid normally, Party B shall make advance payment for free and deduct it accumulatively for the next month.

The third branch of Amazon, Party C in the above agreement, claimed that they were officially authorized by Amazon. On a plaque named Amazon (China) Promotion and Operation Center, Yien.com sees that its authorization number is: YMX000003. However, through a search for "Amazon's third branch", no trace of this company was found , and the only two results were not related to Amazon.

This non-existent "Amazon Third Branch" may have thought that someone would raise this question, so both the agreement and the information learned from the whistleblower showed that Amazon's third branch mainly used the name Promotion under the banner of Amazon (Shanghai) International Trading Co., Ltd.

In the publicity in the name of Amazon's third branch, they said they would show a video of the person in charge signing a contract with the legal person of Amazon (Shanghai) International Trading Co., Ltd. At the same time, it is emphasized that the person who signed the agreement with the seller (Party A) is the legal person, and the sign is Amazon (Shanghai) International Trade Co., Ltd. In addition, Amazon's internal operation team operates the seller's store. They have the resources, master the data of hot-selling products, and have rich experience, which can ensure the continued profitability of the store.

I believe that everyone has noticed the "Amazon seller loan" mentioned in the rights and obligations of the three parties A, B, and C above . This is also the second bait thrown by a fraudulent gang under the banner of investment promotion agency.

The outflow loan processing process shows that sellers (aged 18-60 years old) only need to provide themselves, ID cards, and company business licenses that meet the requirements, and investment agents can use this information to help sellers apply for registration of Amazon North America online store, And apply for a loan. In the early stage, the third branch of Amazon will pay 100,000 in advance, and transport the goods from China to the cloud warehouse in the United States by sea for evaluation, listing, operation, and then valuation and loan amount. The amount that individuals can apply for is: 2 million. If the investment promotion agent applies, the limit is 5 million. During the period, the seller needs to cooperate with the video authentication. The money from the loan can be directly transferred to the seller's own account, or directly to the company to withdraw cash. However, this money needs to be deducted from the 100,000 payment paid in advance by Amazon's third branch , and the remaining part is deducted by 30% of the store's hosting and operating expenses, and then 70% of the seller can take it for their own use.

Calculated based on the loan amount of 5 million yuan, the payment for the goods plus the store hosting operating expenses, Amazon's third branch took 1.57 million yuan at once, and the seller received 3.43 million yuan.

These loans will be repaid in 36 installments using the store’s profits. If the profits are not enough to repay, the fraudsters claim that Amazon (Shanghai) International Trading Co., Ltd. will make advance payments. If the profits exceed the repayment amount, some sellers can pocket the excess. . In addition, on the question of how the profit part is divided with sellers, Amazon's third branch stipulates that: 37 points in the first three years, and 55 points after three years. If the seller does not want to do it after three years, he can also raise 100,000 yuan and then take the money and leave. On the 20th to 30th of each month, sellers can go to the nearest custody center to brush their faces to settle the income.

Looking at it in such a circle, this third branch of Amazon wants to express only one point of view: Amazon gives you money, Amazon helps you run the store, and Amazon helps you support. At this time, many people are going to say "Is there a pie in the sky? This is too unreliable!"

Having already predicted your prediction, they have already prepared their lines: "If it is a small company, it must be a routine, but this is one of the largest companies in the world. The founder has been listed as the world's richest man many times. If not Big company, can we have a chance?"

Finally, I don't forget to say: "This is for the international market, and the income from the domestic market is different. 1 million is just a credit card limit for ordinary people in the United States, not much."

Fraud gangs under the banner of investment promotion agents told sellers that Amazon just combined the business of the business itself, and many people believed it.

However, laymen don't understand this, all they see is that millions are summoned ahead, and they can have it without paying any price. Therefore, mothers and office workers rushed to jump into the pits dug by these people.

Entering the pit Baoma: I divided dozens of pieces in two months, and the store was closed

Zhao Hui (pseudonym) of Linyi, Shandong is one of them. "I'll give you a piece of advice, don't do it, especially the kind that needs to be paid first." When she heard Yi Enjun asked about this, she advised.

Zhao Hui has handed over her information to the intermediary (investment agency) to register the Amazon store since mid-November last year. At that time, they said that the payment could be made in 3 months. After half a year, there was no news at all, and every time she asked the other party. , the answer you get is that you need to wait, don't worry.

"It's cold now, the store has not come down, and the materials have been returned, but the money for the business license has not been refunded to me, and the business license has not been obtained." Speaking of the latest situation, Zhao Hui told Yien.com.

She said that many people around her have handed over their information to the intermediary to register Amazon stores, but no one has successfully registered, "I know 20 or 30 people, including asking others on social platforms, but no one has Take it to the store."

Zhao Hui said that she was introduced to this incident by a friend. Because they were all acquaintances, she did not think much about it, and even handed over the information and money without knowing the specific name of the other company. "A friend told me at the time that there was an 80% chance of being able to get a loan."

"I think it's a lie. They haven't given us an explanation until now, and they haven't told us why it's cold." Now Zhao Hui has come back to it.

Now Zhao Huiqing is fortunate that she only paid 500 yuan to the intermediary and asked them to help with the business license, but her friend was not so lucky, "He did this later than me, including the agent registration fee, shop fees, etc. to the intermediary After paying 20,000 to 30,000 yuan, the agent told him that the store had come down, but he had not seen it.”

She said that there is no uniform standard for intermediary fees. Some people spend hundreds, some spend thousands, and some even spend tens of thousands. Some people spend money, but some people don't. Therefore, everyone's Losses are also different.

According to Zhao Hui’s feedback, there are many people in Linyi who hand over their information to the intermediary to register the Amazon store, and then take out a loan. Even many people from Shenzhen, Dongguan and other places went back to Yi for inspection and devoted themselves to this matter without hesitation.

"You don't have to pay back the money yourself, just go for it." Zhao Hui replied when asked why she and others believed in such a ridiculous thing.

There is a mother who is also one of them, but she may be in a little better condition than Zhao Hui and her friends. Her shop has been in hand and has been operating for 2 months. Cross-border e-commerce blogger and independent website seller Uncle Xie mentioned this in his cross-border e-commerce diary: One night when she was live-streaming, a mother came to the live-streaming room and told him that she Signed a contract with a company to cooperate with Amazon. The company used her information to register a store, and then the company helped her run it and gave her money every month. She only needed to pay the company 39,800 yuan. The annual service fee is enough, but now I only pay for 2 months, a few dozen yuan per month, the store is blocked because they put some illegal products on the shelves, and the money in the store is also frozen. Come back, the money can't be divided.

Enter "Amazon loan" in the search bar of a certain tone , and you can see that it is all like this: "Amazon loan scam", "Amazon loan is not repaid", "Amazon loan is true or false", "Is Amazon loan still real?". This proves that many people have been exposed to this scam and tried to find out its authenticity through other channels.

There is a similar question on a certain call: Is it true that someone asked me to apply for a business license and then open an Amazon account for loan ? And many people in the comment area below the post said they encountered the same thing, and some of them have already handed over the information , someone is watching, someone is preparing to participate in the video verification the next day.

A brief summary of this scam is: someone helps to apply for a business license, and then he opens a store on Amazon with the information and business license and applies for a loan. After the loan is approved, the person who provides the information and business license can share 70% of the money and operate it on behalf of him. The company of the store takes 30% of the loan, and all the loans are repaid in 36 installments (3 years), but the person who does not need to provide information will pay for it by himself.

This scam lures not only those who want to get huge loans, but also those who are interested in its agency. Someone broke the news that his mother spent 20,000 yuan to get an agent.

According to an investment agent, they already have hundreds of agents across the country. And these agents are doing a lot of so-called investment promotion. In a WeChat group with more than 100 people called "Amazon Agents", Yen.com has indeed seen many agents from various provinces, cities and even counties, such as agents in Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province, Shenzhen City, Guangdong Province. Agent in Pingshan District, agent in Fengyang County, Anhui Province, agent in Yuhua District, Changsha City, Hunan Province, etc.

At the same time, Yien.com also found their advertisement on the short video platform certain sound, and the promotional content is almost the same as the one mentioned above. The video said: "Amazon, the world's largest cross-border e-commerce company, plans to recruit 100,000 merchants (sellers) in China, and give each store 300,000 to 450,000 US dollars (about 2 million yuan) in support funds (seller loans) , of which 30% (about 600,000 yuan) is used for store operations and loan repayment, and 70% (about 1.4 million) is transferred to personal accounts, which are at the discretion of the seller and do not need to be repaid."

In the video comment area, some people showed strong interest, and some people pointed out that this was a scam, but these people also raised their own doubts, if this is fake, how could Amazon allow such a thing to exist? Why haven't they taken steps to stop this, aren't they afraid that their brand image will be affected?

In response to this matter, Yen.com also asked Amazon for verification.

Amazon: We do not authorize or certify third-party service providers for investment promotion

Amazon said that at the beginning of this year, they noticed that a company pretended to be Amazon to conduct seller store opening and registration activities, and falsely claimed to provide Amazon loan services. At that time, they also published an article on the official WeChat account of “Amazon Global Store”. Titled "Beware of Fake Amazon Officials and Avoid Being Defrauded! " article.

Amazon said it did not authorize any third party to do business. Interpretation of their words is that any projects, services, etc. extended in the name of investment promotion are not real, and are all scams set up by their criminals under the guise of Amazon's official name.

It is reported that the company "Shandong eBay Pinpin Network Technology Co., Ltd." involved in this case has been seized by the Shandong Linyi police as early as February 2022, and the main culprit, Zhang XX, has also been taken criminal compulsory measures by the police. In addition to providing free loan fraud, the gang is also suspected of impersonating Amazon's global store official to develop regional agents in multiple provinces and cities by charging fees and implement fraudulent activities. Therefore, whether it is a layman or a seller who has already established the cross-border e-commerce industry, do not easily believe in things like pie falling from the sky, and beware of being deceived.

In the article, Amazon once pointed out that if you need to open a store, you can use the official channels of Amazon's global store, including: official website (), and the official WeChat (@AmazonGS) of Amazon's global store, or through the local official team of Amazon's global store to understand and consult.

As can be seen from the above, in order to increase credibility, criminals will use the official banner. There are two main ways to determine whether the person you are contacting is an official Amazon employee :

1. If the other party contacts you by email, it depends on whether the email comes from these addresses : @, @.au, @, @amazon.sa, @amazon.co.uk, @, @amazon.de, @, @amazon .es, @sell.amazon.ca, @amazon.fr, @.mx, @amazon.it, @.br, @amazon.lu, @sell.amazon.co.uk, @.au, @sell.amazon .sg, @, @.tr, @amazon.ae, @.tr

2. If the other party contacts you through WeChat, you must judge whether he is using enterprise WeChat and check its enterprise name . The commonly used enterprise names are: Amazon (Shanghai) International Trade Co., Ltd., Amazon Information Service (Beijing) Co., Ltd. Company Shanghai Branch, Beijing Century Excellence Express Service Co., Ltd.

As for loans, Amazon does launch an official service called the "Amazon Lending Program", which aims to provide short-term business financing solutions for eligible sellers.

But this loan is not something that sellers can apply for if they want to. The "Amazon Loan Program" is an "invitation system", that is, only sellers who meet the application conditions will see the "Amazon Lending" tool on the home page of the backstage of the Amazon Seller Center. It is not the so-called investment promotion agents who claim that "as long as the store is registered, you can apply".

What kind of sellers are eligible to apply? First and foremost, there must be a proven track record of sales growth. Secondly, the seller account must have a good reputation and high customer satisfaction.

Sellers can borrow from $1,000 to $750,000 through the "Amazon Loan Program", and the loan term is divided into 3, 6, 9, and 12 months. But it is worth noting that the seller who receives the invitation does not mean that Amazon will automatically agree after he submits the loan application. Amazon will review it through five working days and decide whether to agree with the seller's application.

In short, there is no free lunch in the world, and there is no need to repay the money you borrowed, especially in this case, the seller borrowed money from Amazon, and Amazon Shanghai will repay it.

And the reason why people still believe in this scam is for several reasons : First, you don’t need to repay the loan yourself, and the revenue generated by the store can be divided; second, this year, cross-border e-commerce is in the limelight, and the development speed is rapid; Some people will dare to defraud in the name of a big company like Amazon. Fourth, the state has encouraged the development of the cross-border e-commerce industry in recent years, and has successively issued a number of support policies.