Youth take loans for IT work with RC Group in Chelyabinsk
The scandalous IT company RC Group, which operates in many regions, has reached Chelyabinsk. The firm conducts business on the principle of network marketing, and often its partners are young people. To start cooperation, it is necessary to contribute money, and typically, new participants take out loans for this purpose, expecting it to pay off and bring profit. But after some time, they begin to believe that this business model does not generate income. Some file reports with the police. For instance, in neighboring Yekaterinburg, a criminal case for fraud has already been initiated. The head of Russia«s Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, has also drawn attention to this organization.
«He suggested withdrawing money from a credit card»
A girl who almost fell for RC Group«s offer wrote to the editorial office of 74.RU.
RC Group is a group of companies specializing in developing a wide range of IT products in various fields. It was founded in 2020 in St. Petersburg. LLC Management Company «ERSI GROUP» is owned by its leaders Elena Mishchenko, Maria Mikhailova, and Yegor Patov. The general director is Dmitry Lazarev. According to their website, the company is engaged in consulting and education. According to information from the service «Kontur.Focus», in 2024, the company«s net profit was 27.2 million rubles (approximately $272,000 at current rates), revenue was 46 million rubles (approximately $460,000), and tax debt was 8.5 million rubles (approximately $85,000).
«I was walking with a friend on Kirovka, a guy approached us, suggested exchanging item for item,» Chelyabinsk resident Irina told us. «We got acquainted, he said he works in an IT company and invited us to chat, to talk about this company in more detail. I, being a curious girl, agreed, came to their office for a lecture, where they talked about the RC PAY app. They boasted about their product for a long time. It was tempting, especially since extra income interests me a lot now. I started looking up more about this company online, and they began convincing me that negative reviews are written by competitors. Another young man, apparently higher in the hierarchy, directly suggested that I withdraw money from my credit card and contribute a fee of 20,000 rubles to become a partner. I refused, but his pressure was quite strong. In the end, I still paid a fee of 1500 rubles to see how the app actually works. I suspect that this is a new pyramid scheme, and now many young people are bringing their money there, getting into loans.»
Boys in Jackets
The office of RC Group is located on Sovetskaya Street. There is no sign on the facade. In a large room—young guys in suits, a few girls. Everyone is sitting at tables and discussing something with serious faces. They look about 18–20 years old.
We enter the premises, but do not introduce ourselves as journalists yet:
— A friend told us that you can earn money here. We want money.
— Please, download the RC PAY app on your phone and through this app you will earn, — a young man in a striped suit, who calls himself Yaroslav, readily responds to our interest. — The app has different subscriptions, you can buy one for 1500 rubles, there is one for 20,000 and others. There are partner tariffs, but it«s a long story, if you have time, come in, listen to our lecture.
— We don«t have time.
— Then I«ll send you a presentation now and you»ll understand everything, — the serious young man continues.
We are standing at the entrance and while we are talking, the doors to the large room where lectures are held are closed. The path to new RC PAY partners is cut off for us. Then we go out to the porch and there we calmly ask the young people what they are doing here?
— I invested 40,000 rubles in a subscription, I don«t remember, honestly, what it»s called, I took the money as a loan, — an 18-year-old guy who came out of the IT company«s office answers. — In the future, the money will be returned thanks to the bonus system, how it works, I don»t fully understand yet. They also position my money investment as a business system, over time I will get more, as business income. As I was told, I am currently undergoing training here for about two days, then some partners will be created and then I will receive profit. I was, of course, terribly surprised when I saw that almost everyone here is my age. In suits, because that«s the dress code, well, it»s business.
— We learned about this company through word of mouth, from friends. We promote the company«s product, work with small and medium businesses, cash solutions, very many directions and yes, inviting acquaintances and everyone, — other guys say.
— Did you invest your own money?
— We invested, any business is not free, you naturally need to invest, — the guys add.
«Clients themselves assess their financial capabilities»
We go again to meet Yaroslav, now as journalists, and ask him to comment on the company«s activities. But he locks the doors in front of us, lets no one in or out. And even lowers the blinds on the windows.
The editorial office of 74.RU sent a request to RC Group, and the company provided a detailed comment.
— The company carries out its activities in the information technology market, implementing its own digital products and educational solutions, — commented Dmitry Lazarev, general director of «UK ERSI GROUP». — Part of our business model is distributing products through a network of distributors—this is a standard and common practice for large companies in Russia and around the world, which fully complies with the current legislation of the Russian Federation.
In the company, they emphasized that their partners decide for themselves whether to take a loan or not.
«The choice of payment method, whether using personal savings, credit funds, or other legal financial instruments, is exclusively a personal decision of each client, — noted Dmitry Lazarev. — This right of a citizen to manage their finances is protected by law. We proceed from the fact that clients are adult, capable people who independently assess their financial capabilities and make balanced decisions.»
Regarding negative comments about the company, the general director said the following:
«Any company working with a large number of clients may encounter isolated cases of dissatisfaction. We are always ready to look into each such situation on an individual basis to find a fair and legal solution.»
Earlier, our colleagues from E1.RU noted that on the company«s official website, among a pile of documents, there is some legal conclusion on the results of an inspection of the activities of »ERSI GROUP«. It was made by lawyer Dmitry Lebedev from St. Petersburg in his law office. Lebedev in 2023 concluded that the company»s work fully complies with the law, and it can be trusted.
«It resembles schemes from the 2000s»
We asked Nikolai Popov, head of the Chelyabinsk legal company «Forlex», what he thinks about this conclusion. And also asked him to explain what should raise concerns in such business models as in RC Group.
«Any court, any law enforcement agencies will evaluate this conclusion as a consultation. A lawyer has no authority to determine the qualification of a company«s actions, — says Nikolai Popov. — In general, this reminds me of schemes that were extremely popular in the 2000s, in the 2010s they began to lose relevance, people got burned. So everything new is well-forgotten old. The first thing that should alert anyone checking the company»s activities is an advance payment. That is, when they offer to earn money, for some reason they ask for money upfront for something. But the most important assessment is what a person gets for this money. Either an educational service, or an opportunity to cooperate with the company. For example, people are involved in some business and additional duties are imposed on them, including purchasing products, and they start demanding that these products be sold to third parties. A typical pyramid scheme. And, of course, the value of the product being distributed is assessed.»
The lawyer advises that in case of suspicion of fraud, first write a claim to the company and ask for a refund. If that doesn«t work, then go to the police and file a report to initiate a criminal case.
The police in Chelyabinsk told 74.RU that they have received one report regarding RC Group.
