Bernard Madoff's Ponzi Scheme

The definition of a Ponzi scheme is, "an investment swindle in which some early investors are paid off with money put up by later ones in order to encourage more and bigger risks". What started out as a small, legitimate trading firm created by one man transformed into a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme. Investors who bought into the scheme varied from Hollywood celebrities, banks and hedge funds, to universities, charities, and ordinary people. The investors never knew their money was actually being used to fund a luxurious lifestyle, lived by a man from Queens, New York, and accompanied by his family and friends. The leader of the scheme, Bernard Madoff, is now serving 150 years in prison for cheating his investors out of an estimated $65 billion dollars. He is arguably one of the most hated people in history, ruining the lives of essentially everyone who believed in him. In 1960, Bernard Madoff created a small trading firm with his name on it. The firm was created with, "money he saved working as a lifeguard on Rockway Beach, on the edge of New York, and installing sprinkler systems" (Frank ; Lauricella). With the success of Madoff 's trading firm, he launched an investment advisory business as part of his firm. He saw a huge opportunity, "in 1975, when fixed commissions for stock trades were abolished. Buried in the rule change was …show more content…
What started as a legitimate trading firm transformed into and empire built on lies. Madoff 's investors lost all of the money they had tied up in his investment firm, making some go bankrupt. The life of luxury and leisure he lived previous to his arrest reveals evil one man can be. Madoff felt no remorse for his investors, and had no problem spending there money. His surviving family members are forced to live with the guilt and shame everyday of their lives due because of Madoff. The Ponzi scheme that fooled everyone led by Bernard Madoff makes him one most hated people in