— Investors loot offices in Adamawa, Kogi as platform stops payments
Nigerians who invested thousands and millions of naira in an online platform known as PXES are counting their losses after the scheme reportedly stopped paying returns and became inaccessible.
The development has sparked anger among investors in several parts of the country, with some aggrieved participants reportedly storming and looting PXES offices in Adamawa and Kogi states in a desperate attempt to recover their funds.
Saturday PUNCH gathered that the platform stopped paying participants in early September, leaving investors unable to withdraw their money or reach the operators.
PXES reportedly attracted participants with promises of unusually high returns, with some promotional materials and reports claiming returns ranging from 25 per cent to 50 per cent and, in some packages, as high as 120 per cent.
However, the reported returns could not be independently verified.
Investors storm offices
In Yola, Adamawa State, videos circulating online showed aggrieved investors removing chairs, tables and other items from a PXES office.
A similar incident was reportedly recorded at the platform’s office in Kabba, Kogi State.
One investor, who reportedly put about ₦209,000 into the scheme, was seen in one of the videos lamenting his inability to recover his money.
The Kabba manager had reportedly sent a message to investors after payments stopped, assuring them that management would compensate them for their patience.
But three days later, the office was allegedly shut, leaving investors without information about the whereabouts of the operators or the fate of their funds.
‘I lost N200,000’
One of the victims, Bunmi Awodipe, said she invested in PXES after three friends showed her evidence of receiving returns from the platform.
Awodipe said she invested ₦200,000 and initially received ₦7,000 weekly for three weeks before payments stopped.
“They told me they invested money in PXES and were receiving their payments. They showed me evidence, so I decided to invest N200,000 and was receiving N7,000 every week. They only paid me for three weeks,” she said.
She said she later visited the company’s office but found it locked and apparently abandoned.
Another investor, Deji Mulero, said a customer introduced him to the platform on September 4.
“It’s one of my customers who introduced this thing to me on September 4. I registered with N65,000 and it crashed the same Friday. That was how I lost my money,” he said.
Another participant, identified simply as Wale, said he registered with ₦207,000 and had accumulated almost ₦600,000 on his account before the platform stopped operating.
For 68-year-old Jumoke Talabi, the investment was meant to help her pay her granddaughter’s school expenses and meet household needs.
Talabi said she invested ₦64,800 after seeing other participants receive payments. She later received ₦70,000 from the platform and decided to increase her investment.
But she said she lost the money when withdrawals stopped.
“It’s poverty that made me do it. If not poverty, I would not, because the money is meant for school fees. I thought that maybe, I would see some to buy rice and eat,” she said.
How PXES allegedly operated
Interviews with participants and promotional materials reviewed by Saturday PUNCH indicated that PXES operated a tiered membership system.
Participants paid specified amounts to join and were subsequently given access to an online dashboard where they completed daily tasks described as “orders.”
One participant, Funmi Deinde, said the platform had different levels, including Star 1, Star 2 and Star 3.
According to her, the packages included ₦21,600, ₦54,800 and ₦207,000, with members receiving access to dashboards containing tasks involving products displayed on the platform.
She said participants initially had the opportunity to withdraw earnings daily, but withdrawals were later changed to weekly.
Another investor, Emmanuel Ajayi, said a ₦64,000 package generated about ₦2,160 from the daily tasks, while a ₦21,600 package generated approximately ₦720.
Promotional materials reviewed by the newspaper also showed packages beginning from ₦21,600 and claimed that some investments could generate several times the original amount over a 360-day period.
Participants also reportedly earned additional benefits by introducing new members and building networks.
‘It is digital marketing’
Questions have, however, emerged over the exact nature of PXES and the source of funds used to pay participants.
At an event in Kabba, PXES representatives reportedly described the organisation as a digital marketing and advertising company, rather than an investment platform.
A company representative, Olubowale Ayodele, told participants that PXES created digital marketing opportunities for unemployed people and graduates.
Another official, identified as the company’s training director, Eniola Oluwatobi, described PXES as an advertising company that allegedly worked with platforms including eBay and Amazon.
He said products were presented to members through the PXES application for advertising purposes.
However, the structure described by participants, including payment for membership, daily tasks, promised returns and referral networks, has raised questions about the platform’s business model.
Experts warn investors
A financial analyst, George Samuel, advised Nigerians to establish whether any organisation is properly authorised to collect deposits or solicit investment funds before committing money.
He stressed that registration with the Corporate Affairs Commission did not automatically give a company the licence to accept investment funds from members of the public.
“While a Corporate Affairs Commission number may be necessary, it does not serve as a licence to accept deposits or investment funds,” he said.
Samuel urged prospective investors to verify the appropriate regulatory licence and conduct basic due diligence before committing their money.
A banker, Kemi Junaid, identified unusually high returns and guaranteed profits as major warning signs.
She said financial desperation and poor financial literacy often made people vulnerable to schemes promising quick and substantial returns.
According to her, investors should understand how a platform intends to generate the returns it promises rather than relying solely on testimonials from existing participants.
EFCC: Report investment scams
Meanwhile, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission said it would investigate reported cases of financial crimes and investment scams formally brought before it.
EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, said the commission would act where complaints were properly reported.
“Any issue of financial crime, Ponzi scheme, investment scam that is duly reported to the EFCC, the commission will look into it. But it must be duly reported,” he said.
Oyewale recalled that the commission had repeatedly warned Nigerians against investment scams and Ponzi schemes, urging members of the public to conduct proper checks before investing.
He, however, did not confirm that the EFCC had opened a specific investigation into PXES.
Another Ponzi scare
The PXES crisis comes amid a series of investment schemes that have reportedly left Nigerians counting losses after promising unusually high returns.
One of the biggest recent cases was the collapse of Crypto Bridge Exchange, popularly known as CBEX, in 2025.
The Securities and Exchange Commission subsequently said CBEX and its affiliates were not registered to operate as a digital asset exchange or solicit investments from the Nigerian public.
The EFCC also investigated the scheme, with authorities announcing arrests and recovery-related proceedings.
Other platforms, including EMAAR and XM Future Music Group, have also reportedly collapsed, leaving investors unable to withdraw their funds.
The recurring pattern has prompted renewed warnings from financial authorities and experts that Nigerians should be wary of platforms promising extraordinary returns with little explanation of how the profits are generated.
PXES platforms inaccessible
Attempts to access PXES’ known website were reportedly unsuccessful.
Some investors also said the platform’s WhatsApp channel had been blocked.
Its Facebook page, PXES NG, reportedly had no recent activity, with the last post said to have been made in June.
The page had been used to publicise training sessions, meetings and other activities involving participants.
The reported collapse has left investors demanding answers about their funds and the whereabouts of the platform’s operators.
