A 19th century Imperial Russian warship claimed to be carrying billions of dollars in gold has been found off the coast of Korea.

It was 1905 and a tremendous naval battle known as the Battle of Tsushima took place during the Russo-Japanese. Much of the Imperial Russian fleet was defeated by the Japanese.

One of the victims was the 5,800 tonne cruiser, Dmitrii Donskoi, scuttled after sustaining severe damage to its stern.

For decades rumours swirled that the ship carried thousands of boxes of bullion and coins, the salaries of crew, wealth for port expenses, and possibly gold from other ships in the flotilla and possibly Russian gold from other sources A South Korean construction company discovered what might be the ship in 2000 but soon went bankrupt.

Another South Korean treasure hunting operation, the Shinil Group hired well-known deep sea technology company Nuytco Research Ltd. of Vancouver. Nuytco had previously located the WW-I wreck of the Lusitania off the coast of Ireland, and that of the Great Lakes cargo ship, Edmund Fitzgerald.

Within two days, the Canadian firm, using two of its specialised designed submersibles located and positively identified the wreck as the Dmitrii Donskoi.

This discovery has caused a frenzy of investment activity in the Shinil Group which has said it will attempt to raise the ship later this year.

While the thought of up to $130 billion worth of gold is causing shivers of excitement in investors and others, several historians are expressing doubt.

"The Investor" website says Shinil is using the discovery and claims of vast gold find to fund its own crypto-currency. The website is recommending caution for investors.

To read the complete article, see:
Sunken Czarist treasure ship found(http://www.rcinet.ca/en/2018/07/19/sunken-czarist-treasure-ship-found/)

It doesn't take much to rev up the imaginations of South Korean day traders. And when rumors were fanned that a ship carrying $132.5 billion of gold had been found off the country's coast, minds started to race.

Regulators are suggesting that people get a grip.

Here's what's known. British newspaper the Telegraph and local media reported that a salvage team discovered the Russian Imperial Navy cruiser Dmitri Donskoi. The warship sank off the island Ulleungdo 113 years ago, rumored to be carrying 200 tons of gold, the Telegraph said.

It's not totally clear why, but a handful of stocks seemed to move on the report.

In a warning issued after the markets closed, South Korea's Financial Supervisory Services said investors need to be cautious when it comes to buying stocks related to the shipwreck-exploration business without checking the facts on the Russian ship. "Anyone who spreads groundless rumors on the vessel will be charged of violations of criminal laws or fined," the regulator said in a statement.

FSS cited a similar case when investors lost money by investing in a company whose stock surged on claims of having discovered a treasure ship. The company, at the end, went bankrupt, leading to "massive losses" for investors, according to the regulatory agency.

In 2000, Bloomberg reported that a South Korean company claimed to have discovered the wreckage of the same warship, Dmitri Donskoi, but that a Russian scholar debunked suggestions the vessel was carrying gold.

"There is no archival material or scientific evidence to support the idea that there is gold on the Dmitri Donskoi," Sergei Klimovsky, then head of scholarly research at the Central Naval Museum in St. Petersburg, told Bloomberg. "This question of gold on Russian warships occasionally arises, but there is none, and the Koreans will be wasting their money."

To read the complete article, see:
Sunken Treasure Ship Discovery Reports Roil Some Korean Stocks(https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-07-18/sunken-treasure-ship-discovery-reports-roil-some-korean-stocks)

Meanwhile it emerged that two other organisations 'discovered' the same wreck years before, including one which went bankrupt after being accused of spreading false rumours to bump up its stock price.

To read the complete article, see:
Is claim that divers found £100 BILLION of gold in Russian shipwreck a SCAM? South Korea probes whether investors are being misled as it emerges the same wreck has been 'discovered' three times(http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5971169/Is-claim-divers-100-BILLION-gold-Russian-shipwreck-SCAM.html)