Tainted legacy: MBI International’s multi-function convention centre building at Taman MBI Desaku in Kulim, Kedah. — ZHAFARAN NASIB/The Star
GEORGE TOWN: Six years after its collapse, the once-popular MBI money game has become the talk of the town again at coffee shops and markets here following recent news about Tedy Teow (pic, below).
The fugitive businessman and founder of MBI – Mobility Beyond Imagination – was deported from Thailand to China last Tuesday to face money-laundering charges.
A Thai court had ruled that Teow was to be extradited to China for 90 days from May 21.
Although Teow is unlikely to return to Malaysia to face charges anytime soon, the very mention of his name in the news had reignited memories of the failed MBI scheme.
A noodle seller in Jelutong here, known as Uncle Chong, remembers Teow as a prominent public figure with his get-rich-quick scheme a few years ago.
“Many made money and many suffered too. I wonder if he will face the firing squad if convicted in China,” said the 78-year-old.
A woman who wished to be known only as Ah Hong, 66, said in the village where she came from, everyone knew Teow as most of them had invested in MBI.
“Many lost their life savings. Some even gambled away their children’s education fund. I got ‘burnt’ too,” she said. However, she refused to give more details.
In China, the 58-year-old Teow is expected to face charges of cheating some two million people of 500 billion yuan (RM307bil).
In 2019, some of those Chinese nationals had flown to Malaysia looking for Teow in a bid to recover their investments in MBI’s online pyramid scheme.
About 100 of them staged a peaceful protest outside the Chinese Embassy in Kuala Lumpur to complain that they had been conned.
Chinese police then sought the arrest of Teow by getting Interpol to issue a Red Notice on him on Nov 9, 2020.
(A Red Notice is an international alert for a wanted person but is not an arrest warrant, according to Interpol.)
Teow was arrested by Thai police in July 2022 for allegedly operating an online casino and being involved in money laundering after they raided his MBI office in Songkhla.
It was reported that the Malaysian police had also applied for Teow to be extradited to Malaysia to assist in investigations under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
In 2018, Teow was fined RM2.5mil and RM3mil by Bank Negara for financial irregularities. The authorities also froze 91 bank accounts with RM177mil linked to MBI Group International.
In its heyday, MBI had a huge support base in Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and China. The company even had a mall here in Penang for members to convert their virtual coins to loyalty points to purchase goods, groceries, household appliances and cars.
The mall at Times Square is now void of activity as most of the outlets had ceased operations.
It existed during a time when there were plenty of get-rich-quick schemes in Penang that promised high returns – JJ Poor To Rich, Richway Global Venture, Mama Captain, and Change Your Life – but MBI topped them all.
A 48-year-old sales promoter, who wanted to be known only as Kate, said she has moved on after a dalliance with MBI.
After a recommendation from a friend, she started to invest in the scheme in 2017. The first eight months were hunky-dory.
“I earned good returns and I began to spend lavishly on branded items using the virtual coins.
“A year later, bad news came when the office was raided by the authorities.
“Most of its businesses were not doing well after the company was red-flagged by Bank Negara.”
In Penang, MBI also had several major housing projects in Bayan Lepas near the Penang International Airport, ehailing services and Taman MBI Desaku in Kulim, Kedah.
The RM1bil Mpire Residences near the airport was its flagship. It was supposed to feature 620 condominium units, a 20-storey hotel with 300 rooms, a retail office complex and a shopping centre. The sprawling project consisting of three 43-storey towers had been targeted for completion in 2021.
A reliable source said that with the collapse of MBI, two parties are now involved in a legal tussle to develop the plot of land.
“Any developments may not materialise so soon,” the source added.
When his money game was active and its popularity sky-high, Teow also made a foray into the hotel business in Penang, Kedah, Thailand and Indonesia.
While Chinese investors will now get the chance to scrutinise Teow when he appears in court later, Malaysians will have to continue gossiping about the good, the bad and the ugly of MBI at coffee shops and markets.
