Shenzhen Shuibei Gold Line online trading platform “Ji Wo Rui” recently faced a massive payout crisis due to a breakdown in fund chain, causing users from various places to go for local rights protection, leading to personnel being taken away, escalating conflicts, and extreme behaviors on site, sparking external attention.
On January 25th and 27th, hundreds of users gathered in the Shuibei area of Shenzhen, demanding the platform to pay back their principal. According to multiple victims, during the rights protection process, some people were dragged into elevators by staff, some were taken away by the police, barricades were set up around the area, and physical conflicts occurred outside the Shuibei Gold Building. Videos and messages from WeChat groups on site show that some rights protectors claimed to have been beaten and restricted from gathering.
Zhang Xiao (pseudonym), from Hefei, Anhui, told a reporter from “Hong Kong Epoch Times” that he invested 60,000 yuan in gold on the “Ji Wo Rui” platform at the end of last year and was unable to withdraw money starting from January 20th. He stated that the platform owner had been soothing users on social media platforms before, but the fund issue remained unresolved. On January 26th, he and his wife went to Shenzhen to join the rights protection activity, where about a hundred victims from all over the country gathered.
Zhang Xiao mentioned that the police separated those participating in the rights protection and arranged them in places like gymnasiums, Shuibei buildings, and the platform’s physical store to prevent concentrated gatherings. “They said they were only maintaining order and not allowing us to get emotional or start anything; whoever starts will be taken away.”
Several victims also mentioned that there were multiple suicide attempts during the rights protection period, with at least one person being hospitalized, with the specific situation unclear. Zhang Xiao stated that the victims were mainly women and young families, many of whom had bought “three gold” for wedding preparations, and elderly victims who could not retrieve their savings for many years were emotionally distraught.
According to victims’ feedback, the payout solution proposed by “Ji Wo Rui” was a discount return of the principal, at a rate of about 20%, along with the requirement to sign an agreement. Victims were concerned that once the agreement was signed, the case would turn into a civil dispute, limiting the space for criminal accountability, leading the majority to reject the proposal.
On the evening of January 27th, the owner of “Ji Wo Rui,” Zhang Zhiteng, released a video addressing the situation, ensuring that he would handle the matter to “give everyone an explanation.”
According to Sing Tao Daily, “Ji Wo Rui” is a business known for gold recovery and low-cost gold sales, which had a good reputation in the Shuibei gold market in Shenzhen. In addition to gold recovery business, the platform also offered functions such as “price negotiation recovery” and “purchase material pricing,” allowing users to make deposits, withdrawals, and other operations within their accounts.
Hong Kong 01 reported recently that the payout turmoil involved assets amounting to 13.3 billion yuan (approximately 60.5 billion New Taiwan dollars), triggering user protests and even escalating into conflicts between the police and the public.