Qnet Ltd, formerly known as QuestNet and GoldQuest, is a Hong Kong-based multi-level marketing (MLM) company owned by the QI Group. QNet was founded in 1998 by Vijay Eswaran and Joseph Bismark. The company's products include energy, weight management, nutrition, personal care, home care and fashion accessories on an e-commerce platform.
The company operates legally in some countries, but has been charged as a Ponzi scheme and multi-level marketing in countries like India. The government of India and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India banned the site in the country after a protest spread in Bangalore.
History
1998 - 2000
QNet was founded in 1998 in Hong Kong by businessmen Vijay Eswaran and Joseph Bismark. Though born and brought up in Malaysia, Eswaran undertook his higher education in the United Kingdom where he learned how multi-level marketing schemes work.
The company was first known as GoldQuest and then QuestNet before the name was shortened to QNet in 2010. In the beginning, it made custom-commissioned commemorative coins and later began selling jewellery and watches. In 1999, Qnet expanded its operations to Malaysia and Singapore and began a partnership with B.H. Mayer's Mint, a German-based mint coin facility. By 2002, the company was active in India, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Eastern Europe.
In 2000, Qnet was the official distributor of the Sydney Olympic Games commemorative coins. It was later named a distributor of FIFA’s Centennial Commemorative coin set in 2004 and a distributor at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games and 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
2001 - 2018
The company expanded its operations to Dubai, India, Indonesia and Thailand in 2001. Qnet started to diversify its products in 2002 into travel and vacations by partnering with QVI Club brand holidays. During this time, the company also announced that it was the official coin distributor for the 2002 FIFA World Cup and an expansion into Europe, Australia and Sri Lanka.
In 2005, QI Group acquired QI Comm, a British telecommunications company. That same year, the company introduced aspIRe Magazine and announced that there were one million Qnet independent representatives around the world. In 2006, Qnet began marketing energy, health and nutritional products. Also in 2006, QI Group acquired Prana Resorts and Spa, a vegetarian holiday resort in Koh Samui. QI Group also acquired the Swiss watchmaker, Cimier. In 2007, the QI Group acquired Down To Earth (DTE), a vegetarian organic health store chain in Hawaii.
The company announced its sponsorship of Team Meritus, a Malaysian motor racing team, and became a sponsor for the Commonwealth Heads Of Government Meeting Business Forum in 2007.
From 2009 to 2012, Qnet was an official sponsor of the Asian Football Confederation during the AFC Champions League. In 2010, the company partnered with Virgin Racing. Qnet received the TRUSTe Privacy Certification in late 2012. Qnet announced its intention to shift its manufacturing operations to India and to open an office in Russia in 2013. The company's QI Tower in Malaysia received the 2013 Building and Construction Authority (BCA) Green Mark Gold Award. In 2014, Qnet started a three-year partnership with Manchester City football club to become the club's official direct selling partner. The deal was then expanded in 2017, and signed a similar deal with the Confederation of African Football in 2018.
Since it opened in 1998, Qnet (Questnet at the time) promoted gold and silver coins. The coin collection business was outlawed in some countries. Though registered in Hong Kong, the company has never operated there or in China. Its majority customer base remains in India and a few African countries. A few years later Questnet changed its name to Qnet and offered additional products via the MLM system. It promotes its products using claims "that would not pass official muster in much of the world." Despite claiming to be an e-commerce based business, an ordinary retail customer can purchase a product only if they have a referrer ID of an independent Qnet representative. Qnet used websites such as www.Qnetindia.in, www.Qnetindia.net, www.Qnet.net and www.questnet.net to conduct its business. These were blocked by Indian Computer emergency response team (CERT) following a court order. Other websites like portal.Qnetindia.net, are under investigation.