A group calling itself “The Hawaiian Kingdom” is offering its own “Hawaiian Kingdom bonds” as a tax-exempt “savings product.”
The group claims they are available in denominations of $25, $50, $100, $500, $1,000, $10,000, $50,000, and $100,000.
The groups website claims investors can never lose money because the bonds “are securities backed by the Hawaiian government. The interest rate is fixed and the redemption value of your HK bond cannot decline.”
Exactly what this particular group claiming to be The Hawaiian Kingdom will be doing with any money they take in on such sales isn’t disclosed, or why we should believe there will be funds available to redeem the bonds and pay accrued interest.
And there’s this:
A bond is a loan to the government and is exempt from any taxes whatsoever. It is a debt security issued by the Ministry of Finance to help pay for the Hawaiian government’s borrowing needs. HK bonds are issued in paper form with an embossed seal over the Minister of Finance’s signature. The Ministry of Finance keeps an electronic file of the issued HK bond(s).
As to the question of legality, the group points to a 1886 law signed by King Kalakaua which authorized the Minister of Finance to issue bonds “with the approval of the King in Cabinet Council….”
There are so many things wrong here.
The most obvious is that the Hawaiian Kingdom and the authority of its laws ceased to exist in 1893. Beyond that, this particular group is just one of many claiming the right to speak for the nonexistent kingdom.
And that means that the 1886 law is not the current law governing investment offers, issuance of “government bonds,” etc.
Now we have a whole lot of federal and state laws regulating the sale of securities, including bonds. You’ve got to wonder whether an offer like this complies with existing securities laws and regulations?
And then there’s the little issue of how an investor can get their money and interest back. According to the fine print in the offer, it’s going to be difficult to get anything back.
The bonds, according to the website, are: “Redeemable at par within 1 year after the 5th year from the date when the United States of America’s military occupation of the Hawaiian Islands has come to an end and that the Hawaiian government is in effective control in the exercising of its sovereignty.”
So say aloha to your cash unless and until five years after that pie in the sky day that an independent Hawaiian government is restored to power. So when will you get your money back? Effectively, never.
What a deal!
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The Hawaiian Kingdom website offering the bonds (hawaiiankingdom.org) is administered by Scott Crawford of Hana. His e-mail address is scott@aloha.net. His phone number is 808-248-8808. Maybe you can ask him about where the money is really going.
Here’s more about Scott Crawford:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-crawford-6439a110/
And here’s the registration page for HawaiianKingdom.org:
https://www.godaddy.com/whois/results.aspx?domain=hawaiiankingdom.org&recaptchaResponse=03AOLTBLTKSpmexkjNAIdCvmsstrbDu4bHIxAigYq_iQmidA8dZ-rVUG3WhBDf3FSI2fnnEnZsm_rJiGFm3jJFN5I70HVQKFc2fSzGB9jQ2ORV10vM1dtUjvvXlQvtemQHlUF9igZawvtKvRImoBjnZl6YeBzWjLrWTIGhsfJ6TKg7lePOgbB_9B-P9z03GrU_eM0-UQdWFTbpUK-pwlDQ2yy1BJkmWpabr4FIl-V2mrF28uA9Tx9H9XcRzdFpqCJGXaOGTu9FPPrQbgmxvr9jldoIbit0HAMnpuCR_UWQEu8vRJGEx1Sz-dA8X9glWC7XtYwj71bpSMTdBYY7vUnea3_j1Ie_eEGkTLH5oo2CEuTwJYkg0SN8ncp1DcyHXCh-N56XJm65J9HcVKi-ARICNv7DH_bZtTqJQdVM9cEDhTL8yrvGPQsRltp0_0oAcqqgLuZPss5TCQCZ0P39-Ih7nOrbmDp48dkY0yrxJonqZ5RxKtrKsdReIMabBthoDRBvyMBYdJquYmFD&isc=cjc1off30
In the 1970s, Moon Man McArdle sold acre-sized parcels on the Moon during a humorous presentation at the UH Manoa Campus Center’s steps.
For a dollar you’d get a certificate as proof of ownership. I probably still have mine somewhere.
It’s just as valid as the HK bond but more valuable: at least you have a nicely designed and printed deed.
This is not a bond to invest, or even a loan to get back. This is outright granting money to an entity with ideals that are not realistic.
You might as well take a pile of cash, then, make it into a bonfire shape cone, douse it with gasoline – light a match and watch it burn. Because literally put, that is what giving money to this entity will boil down to.
This is also bold face stealing for those stupid enough to participate in it. Buyer beware.
Will this stupid shit never end?
Frankly, any fool who “invests” in this kooky scheme deserves to lose their money.
That said, authorities should throw the book at the crooked clowns behind it.
I don’t think they’ll be around very long. BTW, anytime someone says an investment will “never” lose money, head the other way.
All the true believers and the protectors should put their money where their mouths are and invest all their money in these HK bonds.
On October 11 I sent an email to a lecturer at a London university warning her about Keanu Sai’s bogus theories about Hawaii’s history and the bond scam he is now promoting. Starting about 1/4 of the way down are links to a 57-minute video where Sai touts the new issue of Kingdom government bonds, including an application and PO Box number. See
tinyurl.com/SaiColeman101519
A whole 2.5% annual return for a maximum of 6 years? If you are going to issue fake bonds you have no intention of ever paying back why not at least sweeten the terms a little?
It’s a complete scam. Bond issuance goes through several steps. One of which is going through a bank or financial institution that does the actual ssuance. The bonds are then auctioned, the higher the pricd, the lower the interest, since the face value on the bond is what the issuar pays. And bonds have a time horizon when the issuer pays 30;days up to 10 years. The funny thing is it might not be illegal. If you buy a bond with no promise of repayment that’s on you. The only fraud might be in the pretense that they are a government, or some other recogniEd entity.
We all need to be careful and thoughtful, even respectful, if you can muster it. There will always be folks ready to scam for money, through schemes or via politics…
The Nation of Hawaii (with which Scott Crawford has long been associated) is NOT the Hawaiian Kingdom selling bonds.
The online registration for Hawaiiankingdom.org does show Scott Crawford registered the name.
It should be noted that the “genius” behind this “kingdom” scam is employed by the very “fake” State of Hawaii that he is so adamantly opposed to, and as a community college instructor, no less. So utterly ridiculous and shameful for Hawaii. But sadly not surprising. So unfortunate for the innocent students who get indoctrinated by this doofy nonsense.
Where is the Securities and Exchange Commission when you really need them?
Hawaii has also has a unit that investigates these types of claims.
http://cca.hawaii.gov/sec/complaints/
Think if we want to refer to this bond offer as a scam, then should scrutinize our current government run on taxpayer money: rail, homeless issues, Kakaako development / tourism affecting infrastructure. Where’s the real scam?
Think Eric Ryan’s post is most educational.
Among other crimes, kickboxer Dennis Alexio was peddling scams that claimed that the State of Hawaii is illegitimate. Alexio actually believed this. Also, Alexio (born Dennis Raymond Dick) is not Hawaiian or local, he is from California and maybe part-Mexican.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Alexio
A pattern with many Kingdom scammers:
-Not Native Hawaiian or from Hawaii.
-Engaged in other scams unrelated to politics.
-Believe in their Kingdom claims.