The founder of the MMM financial pyramid scheme Sergey Mavrodi, holding a copy of his banned book ‘Temptation’ in Moscow in May 2008. Mavrodi’s schemes stole life savings from more than a million Russians in the early 1990s AFP/Getty

The House of Representatives on Wednesday adopted a motion on the need for caution on the Mavrodi Mondial Moneybox, MMM scheme, as the lawmakers noted that antecedents of the founders of the scheme cannot guarantee security of investments in the long run.

The lawmakers said this is because reports indicate that similar schemes by its founders had been launched in Russia where investors lost money running into millions of dollars.

The House noted that the scheme was also reportedly banned in China as it was considered a pyramid scheme with potential to wreak havoc on the financial system.

The lawmakers also expressed concern that the scheme is not regulated by any law and Nigerians participating stand the risk of losing their investments.

While noting that the CBN has declared the MMM fraudulent, the lawmakers noted that the huge numbers of people participating in the scheme is worrisome, especially since Nigerians had been victims of fraudulent pyramid  schemes in the past.

The House, therefore, mandated the Committees on Banking and Currency and Financial Crimes to investigate the activities of MMM Nigeria with a view to saving Nigerians participating in the scheme from financial ruin.