Until when will FrancSwiss last?

This, I'm sure, is one question everyone wants to know: Until when will FrancSwiss last?

Our simple answer? No one knows.

Like any other High-Yield Investment Program (HYIP), the lifespan of FrancSwiss cannot be foretold. It can last for a few weeks, months or even years.

Take the case of the popular HYIP program PIPS that paid investors 2% of their principal every day and which lasted for two years. The program started in 2003 and became hugely popular in the US after several offline conventions where held where Brian Marsden, the program administrator, met with thousands of PIPS investors. Marsden and PIPS also became a hit worldwide following his visits to various countries and the charitable donations he made in Malaysia and the Philippines.

Investors sensed trouble in late 2005, however, when the program started to delay some of the payments. More investors feared for their investments when Marsden then decided to totally halt payments while supposedly planning for a program revamp. But even before the year 2005 ended, PIPS eventually collapsed and thousands of people lost money. Now, two years after the death of PIPS, many who lost are still waiting and hoping to get refunds once the trial of PIPS owner Brian Marsden is over.

Related Reading:

• PIPS Discussion Folder (now under the Scams/Closed Programs Board) 
• UK Newspaper Guardian's article on the PIPS scam
• Australian Securities and Investments Commission's warning against investing in PIPS 
• US State of Alaska's warning that PIPS is an illegal Ponzi

Some HYIPs do last for a few months. In April 2005, Top Gun Traffic launched with a blast and easily became the fastest-growing "investment program" during that time. A lot of people were lured by the promise of 2% net interest paid on the capital every day. More people were convinced because the owners advertised that they had been doing online business for years and that this business was the cash cow of the new investment program.

But only four months after the program started, the Top Gun Traffic owners surprised investors by admitting that the high return they were offering was unsustainable. With very, very few investors making a profit, Top Gun Traffic closed down on August 2005. To date, the program administrators remain scot-free.

Related Reading:

• TopGunTraffic  Discussion Folder (now under the Scams/Closed Programs Board)

How about an HYIP that closed down even before it made payments? In May 2005, Aaron Bowering, supposedly a familiar figure in the internet marketing industry, started PaidResponse, an autosurf program that offered to pay 1% interest on the principal every day. The bulk of investments were set to mature and be paid three months later, but a few days before payment date, the site went offline. Bowering announced that they were planning a major re-launch but the site and the program never returned. Thousands of investors never received any payment.

Related Reading:

• PaidResponse Discussion Folder (now under the Scams/Closed Programs Board

Other HYIPs last for a few days or, in some cases, merely hours after the program started. For examples of these, check out the growing list of scam online investment programs in the Scams/Closed Programs Board of the PMT Forum.

Hmm, ok. But still, "Until when will FrancSwiss last?"

No change in our answer. It's still a big and proud "We don’t know."

Each HYIP is different and the only person who knows when it will end is the program owner himself.

So think twice before putting money in an HYIP and get out of it as soon as you are in profit. There are groups of people who make huge income from HYIPs and there are groups who also lose a lot. Don't be on that losing group.

If you're interested to read more, here are some forum discussion threads that you may find useful:

• HYIP: FrancSwiss Discussion Thread
• How to Win in HYIPs: Mga Payong Kaibigan
• Guide for Newbies on High-Yield, High-Risk Investing