Bernard Madoff Ponzi Scheme Essay

The Bernard Madoff Ponzi scheme was indeed a despicable intractably woven web of deception. He swindled millions of dollars from both the rich and the struggling middle class for more than 50 years. Madoff was money driven to the point that not even his friends and family was speared from his lies. People are driven by money, therefore, there will always be crimes as a result of the pursuit of this most tempting symbol of wealth. However, this is also the reason authority institutions are developed to insure that people show discretion and adhere to rules and regulations. Madoff’s scheme was able to occur and justice was served, but inadequate, due to a regulatory institution’s failure to cease this criminal operation.
This scheme occurred because Madoff’s operations was controlled strictly. Madoff established his operations with one rule, his name was not allowed to be placed on the prospectus. In addition he established a well-respected “don’t ask because I won’t tell rule”. When this rue was broken by a client it was enforced with intimidation. These main control mechanisms was effective in ensuring that is operations would remained secret. Furthermore, Madoff’s expertise and respect in the business world provided his operation …show more content…
The SEC was provided with multiple opportunities to thwart this heinous scheme. In the early years of the scheme when Madoff’s associates Frank Avellino & Michael Bienes was shut down for their parts in the scheme, Madoff could have been discovered if the SEC had performed a more detailed investigation. Furthermore, the SEC was provided with multiple tips and probable cause to investigate Madoff. For instance, in May 2000 Markopolos a “whistle blower” submitted an eight page memo about a possible scheme operated by Madoff to the SEC. In later years he submitted a 21 page memo, along with other