Consumer complaint received 2023-02-22
Company: CATHAY BANK
State: CA
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Domestic (US) money transfer
Issue: Fraud or scam

Complaint:
I put $ XXXX into this store XXXX of my own and borrowed {$17000.00} from friends and family who trust me and put into this company I sold my XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX because I beloved it would catapult me forward, I now have less than {$200.00} to my name and a host of bills to be paid.. can you please give me wise advice on what I should do in this situation?? 
Please read below First they sent me this On XXXX  XX/XX/XXXX at XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX wrote : Hello sir, the system checked your account : XXXX, your confirmed order today exceeds your store deposit, but you have confirmed all orders, if you have not confirmed the goods before, I can help you apply to cancel part of the order, but now you have clicked to confirm and get the corresponding sales rebate, then you can no longer cancel. Our company can not deduct any money directly from your account, you need to pay 10 % deposit of the marketing amount of the day to ship the goods normally. Check the marketing amount of your store for the day : {$100000.00}. You need to pay the amount of : {$10000.00} to have the item shipped smoothly, please complete the payment and upgrade on XX/XX/XXXX. If the delay is too long and the buyer complains, the merchant 's reputation will be affected and a late fee of 10 % of the total amount will be charged daily. In serious cases, the mall can close the store unconditionally. 


XXXX XX/XX/XXXX I then borrowed ( {$10000.00} ) out of the $ XXXX to pay the balance. 

I then tried to withdraw funds from the company and then they sent this XXXX wrote : Dear store owner, your store ID : XXXX Your total amount in XXXX XXXX account is : {$82000.00}, the actual total income is : {$60000.00}, according to the government online business tax law where XXXX XXXX is registered, you need to pay 5 % personal income tax if your personal income is less than {$10000.00}, and 5 % personal income tax if If your personal income is {$30000.00} or more, you will be subject to a 10 % personal income tax. If your personal earnings are {$50000.00} or more, you will be subject to a 15 % personal income tax. If your personal income is {$100000.00} or more, you will be subject to a 20 % personal income tax. If your personal income is {$150000.00} or more, you will be subject to a 25 % personal income tax. For non-physical stores that earn more than the actual investment, you will be required to pay a 15 % personal income tax on the actual earnings to the government where the exchange is registered. The tax will be collected by XXXX on your behalf, and the total amount of tax you should pay, taking into account your actual earnings, is : {$9000.00} According to the tax law registered by XXXX, you need to make sure that the payment amount matches the taxable amount, otherwise the system will not recognize it, allowing for a {$5.00} difference Please complete your tax payment within 3 days after receiving the email notification, late payment will be subject to a daily penalty of 5 % of the total tax amount, your deadline for payment is XX/XX/XXXX, when you need to pay your tax please contact XXXX customer service to request a payment address. If you have any questions, please contact our online customer service. 

XXXX XX/XX/XXXX I then came up with XXXX of borrowed money from family They promised to handle the taxes, after we wired the money to them I then tried to withdraw funds from the company and then they sent this Hello Dear Shopkeeper : XXXX The funds you have requested to transfer have been successfully sent, and now the funds have arrived in the United States, now the funds need to pay 5 % of the total transfer amount as an entry fee in order for your funds to reach your account safely. This fee is levied by the US government, so please pay it within 24 hours and your funds will reach your account as soon as possible. Based on the actual total amount of your account of {$120000.00}, you will need to pay an inbound transfer fee of {$6200.00}. Disclaimer : XXXX XXXX has released your funds and the funds are now in the process of being transferred and are currently restricted by the financial regulatory authorities of the US government. Please make your payment as soon as possible to ensure that the funds reach your wallet as soon as possible. Any late payment may be risk assessed by the system, in addition to a late penalty of 5 % of the total daily fees for late payments. For the safety of your account, please contact XXXX XXXX  online support in time to obtain the payment address. After payment, please contact customer service for verification. Once the verification is complete, the government auditor will release your funds within 24 hours. Sir, please use XXXX XXXX to invest reasonably and legally, do not use the exchange to participate in terrorist, political, military or anti-religious activities, and refuse to fund these groups. 

I then sent them these messages stated I wanted my funds back and asked was it a legitimate company and they sent these

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation