At the Nanning meeting she was asked to buy 'shares'. Buying a share gave her the right to earn commissions by recruiting two other people into the programme, as described in the invitation.

The scheme offers two membership tiers: an upfront payment of about S$30,000 or S$50,000. Mr Tan told CNA, 'Commission comes from the membership fee of your downline. You’re just passing the money from the bottom all the way to the top.'

All promised returns are tied only to the recruitment of new participants. Mr Tan added, 'There was no product. It’s just purely membership,' and participants are repeatedly told that earnings depend on bringing in more members.

CNA understands that the operation is linked to the long‑running '1040 sunshine project', a pyramid scheme that Chinese authorities have previously clamped down on.

Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that 52 Singaporeans have been arrested in China for suspected involvement in the alleged pyramid scheme.

By charging large membership fees and paying commissions from the fees of people they recruit, the scheme moves money upward while offering no genuine investment, making it a classic pyramid fraud.