Staff at GTIC Holdings (金品軒集團), including its Singaporean owner, Victor Soh (蘇珖量), and general manager Lo Lee-chee (羅湘盈), a Chinese-Malaysian, were yesterday indicted for allegedly operating illegal financial schemes that promised high returns for investing in gold and precious metals.
Soh’s business activities cover Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and other Southeast Asian countries.
Taipei prosecutors said evidence showed that GTIC’s operations contravened Taiwan’s business laws, with illegal profits of more than NT$37.2 million (US$1.34 million) made from Taiwanese investors.
Screen grab from the GTIC Gold Refinery Co Web Site
Soh and his girlfriend Lo, who reportedly obtained Taiwanese citizenship through long-term residency, made a profit of more than NT$70 million in Taiwan, by offering shares of two unlisted GTIC companies on over-the-counter markets, they said.
Investigators said Soh, Lo and GTIC executives targeted the Chinese-speaking population in China and Southeast Asia.
Taipei prosecutors also indicted seven other GTIC staff members, including chief financial officer Lai Chien-cheng (賴建成), e-commerce head Lee Ping-hua (李秉樺), business education head Hsu Ming-te (許明德), accountant Chou Ching-hsuan (周靜萱), an executive secretary surnamed Chang (張), and two sales managers surnamed Lin (林) and Wu (吳).
They were charged with contravening the Securities and Exchange Act (證券交易法) and the Banking Act (銀行法).
The illegal schemes were based on the promise of high returns for investing in gold and precious metals.
Soh allegedly said his conglomerate owned and operated GTIC Gold Refinery Co, as well as authorized oil companies in the United Arab Emirates, and had joint ventures with two major mining companies in Canada and gold trading firms in China.
According to the company’s Web site, GTIC is an international conglomerate headquartered in Singapore, with major gold, precious metal and petroleum trading businesses.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
The New Taipei City Government would assist relatives of those killed or injured in last month’s car-ramming incident in Sansia District (三峽) to secure compensation, Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday, two days after the driver died in a hospital. “The city government will do its best to help the relatives of the car crash incident seek compensation,” Hou said. The mayor also said that the city’s Legal Affairs, Education and Social Welfare departments have established a joint mechanism to “provide coordinated assistance” to victims and their families. Three people were killed and 12 injured when a car plowed into schoolchildren and their
RSS