Former Ghana international Derek Boateng has said he did not invest his money in the defunct Menzgold because he felt their profit margin was too good to be true.
Boateng revealed that many footballers invested their monies in the institution, which has now been established to be a Ponzi scheme.
The 41-year-old noted that although the CEO of Menzgold Nana Appiah Mensah, popularly known as NAM 1, is his neighbour, God saved him from becoming one of the scammed victims.
“I wasn’t a victim of Menzgold, but I heard that a lot of players had deposited their money there. They cannot come out now and say it. It is their business,” he said on Kingdom FM, as quoted by Ghanaweb.
“I did not join Menzgold because the deal was too good to be true. It’s not like I’m more sensible than the others, but I think God was the one who saved me from it because it was too much. I like to suffer before getting my funds, so I don’t like freebies.”
“If I were a victim, I’d have been knocking on his gate regularly because we are neighbours. He would have given me my money because I’d go there every day.”
Menzgold was shut down in 2019 leaving several customers’ money trapped
In 2019, Menzgold was in the news following the company’s troubles with state regulatory bodies over its operations.
The Central Bank and Minerals Commission maintained that the company had been taking deposits and locally selling gold despite not having the requisite licence to do so.
However, the seriousness of the issue was confirmed when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) directed the gold dealership firm to shut down its gold trading activities.
Currently, the operations of the company remain closed to the public, with several customers protesting and agitating for a refund of their investments.
The CEO of Menzgold, Nana Appiah Mensah, has also been charged with defrauding under false pretence and the case is still in court.
