Madoff – Bernie Madoff and the "World’s Worst Ponzi Scheme" – Who is Bernie Madoff and What is a Ponzi Scheme

Lately the news is swarming with stories about a crook named Bernie Madoff who supposedly ran the largest Ponzi Scheme in recent history.  But who is Bernie Madoff, what exactly did he do, and what in the world is a “Ponzi Scheme”?

Who is Bernie Madoff?

Bernie Madoff is an American businessman from New York City, born in April 1938, and the former chairman of NASAQ, who recently admitted to running a massive investor fraud, also known as a “ponzi scheme”. He founded the Wall Street investment firm, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC in 1960 which was one of the largest in all of Wall Street.

Madoff was arrested soon after he confessed to his sons that he had swindled investors through an enormous Ponzi scheme in which he allegedly stole roughly $50 billion dollars of his investors’ money.  Prosecutors estimated losses of up to $65 billion.  Madoff is currently looking at spending the rest of his life in prison and may be forced to pay a restitution of $170 billion. 

What is a Ponzi Scheme?

Apparently, Bernie Madoff referred to his investment firm as a giant Ponzi Scheme, but what exactly does that mean?  Well, according to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the Ponzi Scheme Definition is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to investors using their own money or money coming in from future investors rather than from any legitimately earned money. 

The Ponzi scheme is named after Charles Ponzi, who used this technique in the 1920s by paying investors a 50% return on short-term investments with money from later investors. Contrary to popular belief, Charles Ponzi was not the inventor of this type of scheme, but his operation became so infamous because of the amount of money involved that it became the first to be referred to as a “Ponzi Scheme” throughout the US.  While Ponzi Schemes are in fact illegal they continue to be discovered around the world, running on the “rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul” idea, as money from new investors is used to pay off previous investors in a continuous and destructive cycle until the entire fraud eventually collapses.

What to look for and How to Avoid a Ponzi Scheme Investment Fraud:

When looking to invest or start a new business, always be on the lookout for anything misleading.  Do as much research as you can before getting involved and weigh out both the risks and the rewards.  The potential business and/or investment should provide you with all pertinent information; if they are legitimate, they will have absolutely nothing to hide!

Seek out an honest and reputable company that will empower you with all the necessary information, mentoring and tools for both peace of mind and financial success!

For more information about exactly what to look for to choose the right Business Investment for you, how you can earn your Best Income At Home and the Top Online Marketing Techniques that you can use NOW to make sure money online, go to http://www.make1kaday.com

Shawn Stoik is an accomplished Entrepreneur, Top Internet Marketer and International Team Mentor who trains both Total Beginners and Seasoned Pros to achieve Financial Freedom by creating wealth and prosperity online! For more information on the Top Internet Marketing Tactics that you can use Now to build the most successful online business, please visit http://www.make1kaday.com

i am doing a speech and need an explanation needs to be short.

first a counter and a solution to what he did

for counter i came up with “if people weren't as dumb as they are they wouldn't have fell for this scam” or “the rich became greedy and deserved what they got”….i know its harsh but its realty

im completely stumped on the sloution part? is there a sloution to this problem

how exactly did he pull it off?
so far i know, he was chairman of some stocks market thing and started a family business of “invest” so basiclly people invested in his
business and then what???
i thought if you invest and you get profit back but he used that business for years and made 50 billion……i really confused??