I bought the popular digital collectibles hoping to seize an investment opportunity, but ended up losing all my money.

Recently, Mr. Zhang (pseudonym) asked for help from Chao News Reporter Help. He spent a total of about 220,000 yuan to buy digital collections in the Lianwan App under Hangzhou Lianjie Technology Co., Ltd. Now the App cannot be logged in, let alone withdrawing cash. Mr. Zhang was panicked: What should I do with the recharged money and digital collections?

I recharged more than 200,000 yuan to buy digital collections, but before they appreciated in value, I was unable to get a refund.

In May 2022, Mr. Zhang saw a tweet about a digital collection activity on the Lianwan App, and he was immediately interested.

It is understood that "digital collectibles" refer to digital works based on NFT technology, most of which are non-standardized virtual commodities. A recognized value confirmation system has not yet been formed, and their prices fluctuate greatly.

Mr. Zhang told reporters that the platform issues various digital collections for users to purchase, and some popular collections need to be snapped up. After the purchase, the collection holder can also bid and sell through the platform, and if the transaction is completed at a higher price, he can get a profit.

The platform has previously launched several activities. Photo provided by the interviewee

“The platform had many ways to play before, such as dividing the bonus pool, allowing users with high consumption rankings to share the bonus, enabling priority purchase of certain digital collections, regular airdrops, promised returns in the next few periods, and gifts such as Apple phones for inviting new users…”

Mr. Zhang said that it was because he saw that the activities were very active during that period and believed that there was still a lot of room for appreciation in the future, so he recharged several times on May 16 and May 17, 2022, totaling about 150,000 yuan.

After that, the platform launched several activities to attract him to continue to top up. That year, he topped up more than 90,000 yuan in multiple transactions. "I withdrew 20,000 yuan in the middle, but there was still 220,000 yuan left," he said.

Why didn’t he choose to sell his digital collections and withdraw cash? Mr. Zhang explained that many of the digital collections he purchased with deposits were bought at the highest point, and the prices have since plummeted. Some digital collections have also passed the promotion period and the platform does not allow them to be sold.

Mr. Zhang told reporters that in April this year, he initiated a withdrawal in the App, but the money did not arrive. By May, the App could no longer be logged in, let alone withdrawing money.

The office is empty

Market supervision department: It has been listed in the list of abnormal operations

According to Qichacha information, Hangzhou Lianjie Technology Co., Ltd. was established on August 22, 2018, with a registered capital of 2 million yuan and its headquarters is located in Gongshu District, Hangzhou. Risk information shows that the company currently has information such as dishonest debtors and abnormal operations.

On the morning of July 24, a reporter from Chao News called the company's office phone number, but was told that "the number is no longer in service". Later, the reporter went to the company's registered address, but the building was empty. The property staff learned that the company had been unoccupied since the second half of 2023 and has been vacant ever since.

Photo provided by the interviewee

Mr. Zhang said that there are many consumers who have encountered the same problem as him. "There are more than 50 people in our rights protection group who have recharged different amounts, some more than 300,000 yuan, and some as little as several thousand yuan. We have reported the case to the relevant police station and are waiting for a response."

Relevant staff of the Hangzhou Gongshu District Market Supervision Bureau told Chao News reporters that during a previous inspection and visit, it was discovered that the company was not operating at its registered place and that it was impossible to contact the company, so the company was listed in the list of abnormal operations on December 8, 2023.