Scam

Mansour Tawafi – Involved in a Ponzi Scheme! Be Wary of Scammer (Update 2024)

Mansour Tawafi is the co-founder, President, and VP of Sales of the notorious Ponzi scheme and MLM scam, Validus. 

The pyramid scam acquired another Ponzi scheme called AuLives in 2021. 

AuLives was the last venture by Mansour and prior to that, he was involved in the OneCoin scam as well. 

Mansour is highly experienced in running Ponzi schemes and Validus is his latest attempt at squeezing out more money from gullible investors. 

Both of his last ventures were Ponzi schemes and it’s obvious that he knows what he’s doing with Validus MLM.

In this write-up, I’ll take a closer look at this MLM scammer and help you understand why you should avoid dealing with him and his companies:

Who is Mansour Tawafi?

Mansour Tawafi claims to be a leadership expert and a FinTech enthusiast. He claims to have been in the networking and public speaking industry since 2013. Initially, he was based in the UK. 

But after scamming numerous people in that country, he fled to Dubai. 

Now, he is running Validus, a Dubai-based pyramid scheme. 

mansour tawafi validus

One of his most notable ventures was AuLives. The Ponzi scheme succeeded in defrauding hundreds of investors before collapsing in 2021. 

23/11/2023 Update
As of now, Mansour Tawafi has not responded nor has he apologized for his misdeeds. He has ignored our efforts to highlight the problems faced by their victims. Furthermore, he has only focused on propagating his fake PR.

After its collapse, Validus purchased the affiliate investor database of the company. However, it’s interesting to note that Mansour’s business partner, Dr Parwis Daud, was not seen anywhere on Validus’ website or social media pages in the beginning. 

Later, he started appearing at the company’s events and claimed to be the Chief Network Officer of the firm. 

howard friend
A picture of Howard Friend

Also, Frank Ricketts became the CEO of AuLives for a short period. However, he is facing a trial in Germany for money laundering so that’s probably why Mansour Tawai hasn’t mentioned him on Validus. 

Validus markets Howard Friend as its CEO. 

Regarding Mansour, he claims that he is a dropout of UCL. Currently, he is marketing Validus in various countries, particularly in Africa and Europe. 

What is a Ponzi Scam?

A Ponzi scheme is a criminal deception investing fraud pledging increased rates of interest with less chance of loss to investors. On the other hand, a Ponzi fraud is a fraudulent investing deception that induces retrievals for earlier investors with money carried from later investors.

What is Validus MLM and How Mansour Tawafi is Involved?

Interestingly, Mansour Tawafi doesn’t market many products. The official website Validus doesn’t offer any products or services to consumers. Instead, its affiliates only sell more affiliate memberships. 

However, according to its second website, Validus Trading is a trading academy that focuses on providing trading education to consumers. The company claims to sell fee-based trading courses to help individuals navigate financial markets better. 

Validus Trading mentions “ValidusPOOL” on its website as well. 

mansour tawafi validus

Apparently, the company claims to have products in multiple industries including Forex, Gaming, NFTs, and crypto. The company claims to reward its members through this pool.

This is a pretty common tactic among the latest MLM scams

For example, LyoPay claims to be working on multiple ventures including LyoPhone and LyoTravel, and all of them are supposed to reward their members. None of them exist and the scam is still ongoing. 

Mansour Tawafi’s Validus Trading claims to offer 300% ROI within 60 weeks. They even mention another notorious MLM scam, OmegaPro, claiming to make people “millionaires”. 

validus trading

The company claims to have a world-class platform and focuses on educating people about finances. However, there is no specific material available on their website to figure out exactly what they teach at Validus Trading. 

Clearly, Mansour Tawafi is using jargon to make his company seem legitimate. 

The real product they sell is their affiliate memberships for which, the company has a very detailed compensation plan: 

Validus Compensation Plans:

Every pyramid scheme has a detailed and very lucrative compensation plan. Validus Trading is no exception. 

The company claims to offer 300% ROI within 60 weeks on your investment. Their investment packages range from $50 to $10,000. 

The minimum investment requirement to join the company is $100. 

Invested AmountInvestment Package
$50TP50
$100TP100
$250TP250
$500TP500
$1000TP1000
$3000TP3000
$5000TP5000
$10,000TP10,000

To ensure people can’t file chargebacks with their payment providers, Mansour Tawafi has made sure that Validus only accepts payments in cryptocurrencies. 

So, if you’re interested in investing in the company, you would need Bitcoin, TRC-20, or Ethereum.

Also, the company doesn’t give you your withdrawn money completely. You only get 70% of the requested amount. 

Apparently, the company gives the rest of the money as 10% monthly payments for 12 months. 

Validus MLM Affiliate Ranks: 

Again, like any other MLM scheme, Validus Trading has a detailed affiliate ranking structure. Rankings depend on the amount of investment you bring to the company. 

Mansour Tawafi’s experience in running AuLives and promoting OneCoin has helped him in designing these rankings:

RankRequirement
JadeRecruit and maintain 2 members, produce $2000 in downline investment ($1000/$1000 split across the binary team)
PearlMaintain 2 members, produce $10,000 in downline investment ($5,000/$5,000 split across the binary team)
SapphireMaintain 2 members, produce $40,000 in downline investment ($20,000/$20,000 split across the binary team)
RubyMaintain 2 members, produce $160,000 in downline investment ($80,000/$80,000 split across the binary team)
EmeraldRecruit and maintain one Ruby member on both sides of the binary team, produce $500,000 in downline investment ($250,000/$250,000 split across the binary team)
DiamondRecruit and maintain one Emerald member on both sides of the binary team, produce $1,500,000 in downline investment ($750,000/$750,000 split across the binary team)
Blue DiamondRecruit and maintain three Diamonds, produce $4,000,000 in downline investment ($2,000,000/$2,000,000 split across the binary team)
Black DiamondRecruit and maintain three Blue Diamond members, produce $8,000,000 in downline investment ($4,000,000/$4,000,000 split across the binary team)
Crown DiamondRecruit and maintain three Black Diamond members, produce $16,000,000 in downline investment ($8,000,000/$8,000,000 split across the binary team)

Also, the company claims to pay its affiliate members a 10% referral commission on the investments of their personally recruited members. However, the company has limited referral commissions to $10,000 per day. 

As you can see, Mansour Tawafi has used this experience in running scams to ensure Validus Trading looks lucrative. 

Apart from the above commissions, the company claims to offer residual commissions of up to $35,000 per week (commission from the investment of your binary team). Similarly, the company claims to offer Rank achievement bonuses as well:

RankBonus
SapphireApple Watch Series 7
RubyiPHone 13
EmeraldDubai retreat
DiamondRolex watch
Blue DiamondBMW 3 Series
Black DiamondMercedes-Benz E-Class
Crown DiamondLamborghini Huracan

If you don’t know about the nature of this scam, you might certainly get swayed. That’s what Mansour Tawafi does. 

He wants gullible investors to think they can win sports cars and make thousands of dollars every day by joining his scam and making other people join this pyramid scheme. 

Explaining the Validus MLM Scam by Mansour Tawafi:

It’s obvious that Validus Trading is just another MLM scam. Mansour Tawafi has provided this company with a detailed compensation plan and lucrative ranks to make it stand out but it won’t change the truth. 

Validus is a Ponzi scheme. A Ponzi scheme involves paying its existing investors in a nonexistent enterprise by using the funds of its new investors. Their survival is dependent on new recruitment. As soon as recruitment begins slowing down, these companies collapse. 

ponzi scheme

Almost all investors lose their money with a Ponzi scheme. 

They attract investment by promising high returns and low risk. However, these companies never succeed. The previous venture of Mansour Tawafi is a great example. 

AuLives survived in the market for a couple of months until it collapsed in 2021.

There are plenty of examples of such Ponzi schemes. For example, Justin Halladay is another MLM scammer who used to run CashFX. CashFX collapsed after running for merely 2-3 years. 

The company caused severe losses to thousands of investors across the globe. Only Justin and his friends were the people who made any money from this scam. 

I can say the same about Mansour Tawafi. When the Ponzi scheme of Validus Trading collapses, only he and Howard Friend would be the ones left with the funds. 

Also, the scam has received a warning from a financial regulator. That’s all you need to know about the legitimacy of this pyramid scheme:

FMA Issues Warning Against Mansour Tawafi’s Company:

The Financial Markets Authority, the financial regulator of New Zealand, has issued a warning against Mansour Tawafi’s scam: Validus. 

The regulator says that they are aware of the seminars this company is conducting in New Zealand to promote its products and services. 

mansour tawafi scam
(Source)

They are concerned that Validus is operating in breach of the New Zealand financial markets legislation. Particularly, the company is selling financial services in the country without registering as a financial services provider. 

FMA has strongly recommended investors avoid this company. 

Financial regulators only issue warnings against known scams and frauds. 

Validus Dubai Reviews: Victims Expose Mansour Tawafi

Apart from a fraud warning, there are plenty of Validus Dubai reviews on Mansour Tawafi’s company exposing its scam. Going through these reviews will help you figure out how dangerous this Ponzi scheme is. 

Here is what the victims of Mansour Tawafi are saying:

“Mansour Tawafi Doesn’t Issue Refunds, Has Horrible Customer Support Staff”

validus trading review

Here, the reviewer points out that the ROI in 12 months is not a convenient facility here because the customer support of Mansour Tawafi is horrible. They say the staff gives the same reply again and again. 

The reviewer highlights that they have tried to cancel their investment because Team Validus says the investment is not locked. However, the company doesn’t refund them. Instead, they reply rudely to their refund request. 

Clearly, the victim doesn’t recommend investing in Validus Trading. 

“Team Validus is a Scam”

validus trading review 2

Imran points out that Team Validus is a scam. He urges others to not deal with this company. 

“Mansour Tawafi is Making Affiliates Write Fake 5-star Reviews”

validus trading review 3

Nancy points out that the mindless leaders of this scam only want you to pump in as much money into Validus as possible so they can achieve their ranks. 

The company lies about issuing withdrawals per week. Nancy highlights that Validus Trading issues withdrawals in 60 weeks contrary to what it claims. 

Also, the company is urging its members in chat groups to post 5-star reviews so more people would fall for the scam

Nancy says Mansour Tawafi and other leaders are scammers spreading wrong information everywhere. 

Here are some additional Validus Dubai company reviews: 

More Validus Dubai Reviews:

validus trading reviews
Mansour Tawafi reviews
Mansour Tawafi reviews
Mansour Tawafi reviews

Conclusion

After going through the above points, it’s clear that Mansour Tawafi is a dangerous scammer you should avoid

He has a lot of experience in running and promoting Ponzi schemes. His latest scam, Validus, is extremely dangerous and you should stay as far away from it as possible. 

There are plenty of their victims already and the number will only grow. 

If you want to raise awareness against this scam, please share this review on social media. The more people know, the better. 

Every bit helps.

2.3 Total Score
Avoid Mansour Tawafi

Mansour is an experienced scammer involved in multiple Ponzi schemes. His current scam, Validus Trading, is extremely dangerous and has received a scam warning from New Zealand’s financial regulator. Beware.

2.6Expert Score
Trust
2.1
Experience
3.4
Professionalism
2.4
Ethics
2.6
2User's score
Trust
2.1
Experience
2.1
Professionalism
2
Ethics
1.9
PROS
  • None
CONS
  • MLM Scammer
  • Received scam warning from FMA
  • Ponzi schemer
Add your review  |  Read reviews and comments

35 Comments
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  1. 0.1
    Trust
    10
    Experience
    0
    Professionalism
    0
    Ethics
    0

    Im just glad i didnt recruit anyone into thisfor this exact reason, and are the authorities on too this, there must be a ton of evidence and a trail to find these culprits especially as they have a social media profile

    Helpful(0) Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
  2. I have seen several other users who have earned profit from the firms and have passed the opportunities to others for investing and should earn some profit from Validus, so I am not sure whether the article is reliable or not, but be sure before taking some decision.

  3. Don’t rely on their advertisements, not a legitimate firm.

  4. It is very much important to stop these investors from introducing these fake schemes in the market and scamming their users.

  5. Most of their schemes are falso and not only Validus but several other fake schemes have been produced by this firms, Mansour Tawafi, is not reliable with his schemes so avoid investing with them, and make sure you don’t fall for these fraudsters, and regret afterward.

  6. The biggest problem with Validus is that only selected users can generate income through this firm and the rest of the investors have to suffer.

  7. Can you be sure of investing with this company, their fake promotions about investment schemes, and criminal past is dangerous for investing.

  8. Validus is also a Ponzi scheme, and indulged in lawsuits regarding scamming their users, so the history of the company isn’t convincing for investing, so I will suggest you avoid this Tawafi Mansour for investing with him, he isn’t reliable, and running a non-legitimate business is illegal so the future of the company isn’t secure and is reflecting the negative aspect of the company.

  9. I would never invest with this firm, total waste of time, and most of the reviews are negative.

  10. Get the complete information of Mansour Tawafi, and then only invest in his company as their dealing isn’t legitimate, and the work experience is not acceptable at this stage.

  11. Make sure you are ready to face the consequences after investing with them, as the results will be the same, losing your money.

  12. Avoid investing with them, not legitimate.

  13. The company will promote themselves as the highest revenue generator and provide profit to their users, but the reality is far more difficult than this, we need to avoid such firms for wasting our time, make sure our money is invested with some reliable firms, not with fraudsters like Mansour Tawafi.

  14. 2.5
    Trust
    50
    Experience
    50
    Professionalism
    50
    Ethics
    50

    For the person that wrote this article, you mentioned a few companies here. I would love to know if your research/experience has led you to believe that these specific companies are a scam.
    What is your general overview on MLMs?

    Helpful(0) Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
  15. 0.75
    Trust
    10
    Experience
    20
    Professionalism
    10
    Ethics
    20

    Validus has received a warning now. They are a total scam. I regret investing there. Mansour sounds so good on stage I was actually convinced I was investing in a proper opportunity.

    Helpful(3) Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
  16. Whenever I hear about the name Mansour Tawafi it reminds me about the previous scams he used to do with one ponzi scheme which got collapsed and also got a warning from New Zealand’s financial regulator.

  17. 0.75
    Trust
    20
    Experience
    10
    Professionalism
    20
    Ethics
    10

    For everyone’s kind information if you are not aware about Validus’ past, it was a part of previous Ponzi schemes which collapsed and now this one is operated from Dubai. If you are investing your money then it should be your regular practice to verify the complete past of the company.

    Helpful(1) Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
  18. Reply
    Don't Trust Mansour Tawafi
    December 18, 2022 at 1:24 am
    0.6
    Trust
    10
    Experience
    10
    Professionalism
    20
    Ethics
    10

    It was a big mistake to invest in Validus because they make things complicated whenever you ask them for your payouts.

    Helpful(1) Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
  19. Now I am really bored of the line “high returns low risk” because the main problem is with the mindset of people. Everyone wants to become Millionaire in a short period of time which gives birth to all these scams where they are taking advantage of our mindset.

  20. 0.75
    Trust
    10
    Experience
    20
    Professionalism
    20
    Ethics
    10

    Once my friend got interested in these online investments, he opted to go with the MLM schemes because he thought it would be easy to sell products and add new members according to him. But after a couple of months he asked for all his credits and wanted to quit but they asked him to add ten more members after that only he will get paid. They keep refusing his refund request.

    + PROS: None that I can think of
    - CONS: MLM scheme Poor track record Poor leadership
    Helpful(1) Unhelpful(1)You have already voted this
  21. 0.85
    Trust
    10
    Experience
    20
    Professionalism
    20
    Ethics
    20

    Only a few affiliates make most of the money at Validus.

    If you are thinking of investing here, you will be making a big mistake.

    Validus took thousands of dollars from me and when I asked for my payouts, I was told I need to get more recruits. So far, getting more recruits hasn’t helped.

    The company doesn’t give proper payouts and now my money is stuck. They don’t give refunds and one of my uplines told me that if I want to make my whole withdrawal amount I will need to get more recruits.

    Enough is enough.

    I know I am trapped. Please don’t make the mistake I made. Avoid Validus.

    Helpful(2) Unhelpful(1)You have already voted this
    • It is terrifying because the rate with which these scams are taking place will make the users get back or will stop investing in these schemes.

  22. 0.5
    Trust
    10
    Experience
    10
    Professionalism
    10
    Ethics
    10

    How long will people keep falling for these Ponzi schemes? There are too many red flags in Validus. Like the fact that its owners used to run another Ponzi scheme which has already collapse? I feel sorry for anyone who is investing or has already invested in this company.

    + PROS: Good at marketing
    - CONS: scammer
    Helpful(2) Unhelpful(1)You have already voted this
    • The investors of these company would have never thought of getting scammed like this, once my friend who played a gamble by investing into some crypto where he was promised to get his invested amount tripled in a week but the company’s terms of the investment where to invest $7000 at once, he invested. But in the end the company didn’t respond to him.

  23. 0.6
    Trust
    20
    Experience
    10
    Professionalism
    10
    Ethics
    10

    As per the company’s referral policy one of my friends sent me the link to this company for promoting a brand, I knew this was an MLM scheme and I was not interested in these schemes at all because in most of the cases I found that these sites are not trustworthy with your hard earned money.

    - CONS: horrible policies
    Helpful(1) Unhelpful(2)You have already voted this
  24. 0.5
    Trust
    10
    Experience
    10
    Professionalism
    10
    Ethics
    10

    Validus trading makes many hollow promises. I expected to get decent ROI but so far, I have received nothing but disappointment. Mansour Tawafi says in his presentations that Validus is the future but in my experience, the company is a Ponzi scheme. I regret investing here.

    Helpful(2) Unhelpful(1)You have already voted this
    • It is very important to confirm whether the company you are investing money with is trustable or not because the current data shows that out of 10 such companies only 2 to 3 are trustable.

  25. 0.75
    Trust
    20
    Experience
    10
    Professionalism
    20
    Ethics
    10

    It is no joke. Mansour Tawafi really makes people write fake 5 star reviews. I am pretty sure you guys will begin seeing a ton of fake reviews here on Gripeo too.

    It is so sad but with the sheer number of Validus reviews I see online are a clear indication of what is to come. Expect to see numerous fake reviews claiming Validus is great and whatnot.

    + PROS: none
    - CONS: Fake reviews
    Helpful(2) Unhelpful(1)You have already voted this
  26. 0.6
    Trust
    10
    Experience
    20
    Professionalism
    10
    Ethics
    10

    It is not at all easy to determine if an investment scheme is legitimate or not. After all it is a gamble whether you will get your money back or will add one more name to the list. I had my reservations about Validus and Mansour Tawafi too. But thanks to you, I know their truth now.

    + PROS: none
    - CONS: Scam Untrustworthy
    Helpful(1) Unhelpful(1)You have already voted this
  27. Howard Friend is a fool for joining the Validus team. The guy did not have any criminal past but now Mansour Tawafi will make him the scapegoat for the whole scheme.

    That man doesn’t know how vicious Tawafi is. He might end up going to jail and get blamed for everything Tawafi is doing. It’s a bit laughable tbh.

  28. 0.75
    Trust
    20
    Experience
    20
    Professionalism
    10
    Ethics
    10

    The biggest problem with Validus or any MLM scheme is that when asked to transfer my money they refused and asked to bring more members which never helped me to get my money. I don’t think it is good to invest in these MLM scams, keep a distance and also ask your friends to beware.

    + PROS: no
    - CONS: mlm scam, fraud, scammer
    Helpful(1) Unhelpful(1)You have already voted this
    • 4.85
      Trust
      100
      Experience
      100
      Professionalism
      90
      Ethics
      100

      I VEHEMENTLY DISAGREE WITH THE COMMENTS POSTED.
      TO KNOW IF SOMETHING IS A SCAM , U NEED TO BE A PART OF THE PROJECT. THE EXPLANATIOS OF HOW VALIDUS WORKS AND WHAT IT PROVIDES ARE INCONSISTENT AND INNACURATE. I SUGGEST ANYONE TO GET THEIR FACTS CORRECT BEFORE MAKING IRRATIONAL COMMENTS. There are Validus copycats out there and these are the incorrect platforms.
      I habe met the whole management team PERSONALLY and In Person. I have been physically at their offices.

      People , get ur facts right.

      If any of YOU have REALLY had these experiences , send me the names od the people U were referred by and I personally will get Management to Investigate

      + PROS: Only Pros.
      - CONS: Nothing to add here
      Helpful(2) Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
  29. 0.5
    Trust
    10
    Experience
    10
    Professionalism
    10
    Ethics
    10

    My experience was really bad as our family was not financially stable as we were paying our house loan. After coming into contact with one of the agents of Validus it seemed that it was time to have our problems solved, but all it led to was getting scammed.

    Helpful(1) Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
    • Firstly, with any kind of investment, if you do not have the funds that you are comfortable to let go or lose then you should not invest that money to begin with.

      Secondly, having looked at Validus’ compensation plan, the plan is very clear.

      So I would have to question how much you had invested, how long has that money sat in your Validus account and what were your expectations in terms of timeline and ROI.

      The mindset of having your problems solved through investment is questionable. True ROI from investment opportunities takes time.

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