Bernard L. Madoff has been accused by federal officials of running a $50 billion investment fraud known as a Ponzi scheme in the largest investor fraud ever.
Bernard Lawrence Madoff was born on the 29th April 1938 in New York City. He attended the Far Rockaway High School and then graduated from Hofstra University in 1960 with a degree in political science. He is married to his high school girlfriend Ruth Madoff and has two sons, Mark and Andrew, who went to work at their father's firm.
Madoff started his investment firm, Madoff Securities, in 1960 with a $5000 investment which he earned whilst working as a lifeguard and other odd jobs.
The company soon turned into a successful trading firm which was known for its reliable returns of over 10% each year. He was also the Chairman of the NASDAQ stock exchange. By the 1980s the company was one of the largest trading firms and by 2000 it had around $300 million in assets. He was a member of the exclusive Palm Beach Country Club. He owned homes in Europe and New York.
On 11 December 2008, federal agents arrested Madoff at his Manhattan apartment and charged him on one count of securities fraud. This occurred after Madoff admitted to his sons that he had been running a massive fraud, and they turned him in.
This one count has turned out to be worth more than $50 billion and has affected celebrities such as infamous film director Steven Spielberg.
It has been announced that Mr. Madoff had been running a Ponzi Scheme (the name Ponzi comes from an Italian immigrant, Carlos Ponzi, who ran a similiar scheme during the 1920s) for over two decades. A Ponzi Scheme is a complex idea but below is a brief explanation:
Madoff attracts first investor and says he can get him a good return on their investment.
Madoff does not invest much, if any, of the money and uses it for himself and for other uses.
When it comes for Madoff to return the money to his first investor-he attracts other investors and pays off the first one.
This then carries on in a $50-billion pyramid scheme with no real money in the business-it was simply being moved from person to person.
Having been caught, Madoff simply told the investigators that the money just was not there.
The maximum prison sentence for such a crime is 20 years in prison and a $5-million fine for what is thought to be the largest ever Wall Street scam. It has affected banks and business all over the world-some reporting multi-billion dollar losses.
The copyright of the article A Biography of Bernard L. Madoff and His Scam in Investment is owned by Patrick Hinton. Permission to republish A Biography of Bernard L. Madoff and His Scam in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
Great Person..Great Mind..of course now everybody will say he is a lier but
he is not..actually people trusted him their funds..it wasn't his
mistake..but mistake of all those who think only about money and how to
increase their funds..Madoff says that"the money just was not
there" he means that what people trusted him is just an
illusion..because 1 dollar or 50 Billion dollar are both just an illusion
of all those stupid minds...hahahahah:) Mr.Madoff..good Job..i AM YOUR
FAN......
Mar 12, 2009 8:26 PM
Guest :
Wow what a guy! I don't think the boys in prison will take too kindly to
Mr. Madoff, who MADE OFF with tons of people's moola. I wouldn't want to
be in his shoes....yuck.
Mar 18, 2009 1:22 PM
Guest :
Something doesn't feel right about what is happening with this man. There
is an air of "Scapegoat".
Mar 18, 2009 1:23 PM
Guest :
Bernard Madoff is a Societal Scapegoat.
Mar 28, 2009 2:27 PM
Guest :
The second worst thing about this (besides the fact that he swindled the
world of %50 billion-may have caused the recession??) is that it was his
sons who turned him in. They did the right thing, I guess, but they must
have either really hated him or he told them to tell the police (probably
unlikely).
Apr 21, 2009 5:29 AM
Guest :
People: I dont know why people have so much hatred against him. It is
not his fault that our society has stupid people. If it is too good to be
true then it is to good to be true. People that had invested in his funds
should know where they are investing.
his fan, a high
school senior gal
Apr 24, 2009 2:06 PM
Guest :
How is anything that he did anyways good? It made many familys experience
hard times when they thought they were actually starting to be financially
secure. What about the people who now don't get to retire like they
recently thought. And if you think that its "cool of him and that your
a fan" than your messed up in the head and should consider seeking
help.
Apr 26, 2009 4:59 PM
Guest :
madoff is the worst person ever what he did is horrible he is the reson soo
many people are now poor and to say that it isnt his fault that it is his
investors is completely wrong! they trusted him and he deliberatly came up
with scheme and he was happy at first because he was steeling money its too
bad that he is 70 because he should rot in jail for his entire life for all
i care not just the last 20 years or so. and for all those peopl who say
they are a fan of madoff... you should be ashamed to say that!!! what he
did was wrong. i hate him i could possiblt consider him a terrorist, he
stole over 50 BILLION DOLLARS for pete's sake, he should be treated like
one and not like he's being treated i mean he had house arrest in his 7
million dollar appartment. come on you cant say you dont think that is
wrong.
Apr 29, 2009 7:40 AM
Guest :
Mr Madoff is a great man for thinking about a way to make money... but the
form that he did it in is wrong to have people going through tough times
without their money. knowing this i can say that i am i fan of his genus...
but not of his work.
Jan 7, 2009
