Dear Friend,
Many thanks for responding to my proposal. well, I must say that I have enormous respect for you considering the manner in which I have made contact with you. I would go straight to the proposal at hand without wasting much of your time. It is left for you to make up your mind if you would go along with me in accomplishing this or not. If you do wish, then please act as I have instructed. If not, please keep these details to yourself and I promise to compensate you all the same as soon as the transaction is concluded, as far as you stay in touch. I would respectfully request that you keep the contents of this email confidential and respect the integrity of the information you come by as a result of this email. I contact you independently and no one is informed of this communication.
In 2008, the subject matter; (Late Alfred) came to our bank to engage in business discussions with our private banking division. He informed us that he had a financial portfolio of $42 million United States dollars, which he wished to have us invest on his behalf and I was appointed his private banker/portfolio manager at the time. I then provided numerous suggestions and advise in line with my duties. Given the volume of funds he wished to put into our bank, we met on numerous occasions prior to any investment being placed. I encouraged him to consider various growth funds with prime ratings. The favored route in my advice to customers is to start by assessing data on 600 traditional stocks and bond managers and alternative investments. Based on my advice, we spun the money around various opportunities and made very attractive profits margins during our first few months of operation. The accrued profit and capital at this point stood at over US$46 Million. He desired low risk and guaranteed returns on investments, and as such we could not utilize the full potential of the funds
In October 2008, he instructed that the portfolio be liquidated because he needed to make urgent real estate investments requiring cash payments in United Kingdom. We got in touch with a specialist bank who agreed to receive this money for a fee and make cash available to Alfred.
Last month, I received a notice from the specialist bank notifying me that as a policy, their bank was obliged to notify the originator of a transfer in the event of such remaining dormant/unclaimed after 4 years. The $46 Million we had transferred on behalf of Alfred had sat in the bank for over 3 years untouched, without any instructions from him.
This was indeed shocking news for me considering the urgency he had requested we make the transfer at the time. Upon inquiry I found out that he was involved in an accident in Mainland China and passed away only a few weeks after the transfer was made to the specialist bank on his behalf.
As his personal banker, I used all information available to me from his files and upon further inquiries discovered that the deceased died intestate – In fact, he died without nominating a next of kin, or a beneficiary for his estate in the event of the inevitable.
His records with us too show no next of kin and the reason I am writing you is because you bear the same last name with him.
What I wish to relate to you may smack of unethical practice but I want you to understand something. It is only an outsider to the banking world who finds the internal politics of the banking world aberrational. The world of private banking especially here in China, is fraught with huge rewards for those who occupy certain offices and oversee certain portfolios. What I propose is that since you are a foreigner and I have exclusive access to his file and the specialist bank was given instructions by me to receive funds when we sought their assistance, you will be made the beneficiary of these funds and the specialist/holding bank subsequently instructed to make payment of the monies in their custody to you.
Nobody is getting hurt in this. As a banker here in China, we see so much cash and funds being re-assigned daily. The alternative to this would be that when my bank is notified, the Specialist Bank would be instructed and the money reverts back to the state or embezzled by a corrupt top official which is more likely to happen. I know that this may be hard for you to understand, but the dynamics of my industry dictates that I make this move. Such opportunities only come once in a lifetime and as personal banker to the DECEASED and custodian to his files and all his information here, I hold the KEY to these funds. I want us to keep communication for now strictly by the above details. Please, again, note I am a family man; I have a wife and children. Do not betray my confidence. If we can be of one accord, we should act swiftly on this.
I propose that upon successful completion of this deal, we will split the proceeds according to a ratio to be agreed in subsequent communication between us.
Finally, I thank you for taking the time to read this and look forward to receiving a swift response from you (hoping you accept my offer to participate in this once in a lifetime opportunity).
Yours Sincerely,
Mao Chen