Ponzi Schemes Category

You have already read about Ponzi schemes. Don’t assume you can’t be victimized by these illegal programs. Most victims invested in them after they were told how great they were by someone they liked or trusted. People running schemes and scams use very sophisticated marketing tactics that are based on what you want to see and hear before you invest.

By: Matthew Arndt, CFA, CPA, CFP | January 22, 2010 | Illegal Schemes & Scams, Ponzi Schemes

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleges from 2007 through 2009, 51-year-old Steve W. Salutric a co-founder of investment advisery firm, Results One Financial in Elmhurst, IL, misappropriated several million dollars from his clients, one of which included a 96-year-old suffering from dementia.
According to the complaint, in addition to other crimes, Salutric embezzled over $400,000 [...]

By: Daniel ChencloseAuthor: Daniel Chen Name: Daniel Chen
Member: Member Paladin
Quality Rating:
Email: dcstrategies@yahoo.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com/external/beaninformedinvestor/advisor_profile.php?advisor_id=1893
About: Dan's specialty is delivered by his Wealth Management Practice with a core competency in Fianancial Planning. The ability to deliver services for a fee eliminates the potential conflicts of interest created by the commission only type of aproach. He maintaines his office in Ocean N.J. however serves a clientel base from coast to coast. Dan believes that the basis for a great life is planning for it. Dan offers a no obligation meeting to decide if his services are appropriate for your needs.See Authors Posts (10) | September 29, 2009 | Ponzi Schemes

This story just hit the news wires. The link http://www.fa-mag.com/fa-news/4513-broker-charged-in-massive-ponzi-scheme.html will take you to the complete article by, FA Magazine, a industry publication.
Read the article and see the lessons learned.

By: Jack WaymirecloseAuthor: Jack Waymire Name: Jack Waymire
Email: jack@paladinregistry.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com
About: Jack writes for the InvestorWatchdog website and Worth magazine. He worked in the financial services industry from 1976 to 2004. For twenty of those years he was the president of a Registered Investment Advisory firm and a Broker/Dealer. Jack is the author of Who's Watching Your Money? The 17 Paladin Principles for Selecting a Financial Advisor and is a co-founder of PaladinRegistry.com.See Authors Posts (88) | August 30, 2009 | Ponzi Schemes, The Regulators

Bernie Madoff’s company was an SEC registered investment advisory firm when he voluntarily admitted he was running an illegal Ponzi scheme. He was not caught by a regulatory agency. In fact, being a regulated company may have helped him rip-off investors. They assumed he was legitimate because he was registered.
Why do so many bad [...]

By: Jack WaymirecloseAuthor: Jack Waymire Name: Jack Waymire
Email: jack@paladinregistry.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com
About: Jack writes for the InvestorWatchdog website and Worth magazine. He worked in the financial services industry from 1976 to 2004. For twenty of those years he was the president of a Registered Investment Advisory firm and a Broker/Dealer. Jack is the author of Who's Watching Your Money? The 17 Paladin Principles for Selecting a Financial Advisor and is a co-founder of PaladinRegistry.com.See Authors Posts (88) | August 27, 2009 | Bad Products & Services, Ponzi Schemes

Frank Castaldi, Prospect Heights, IL, pleaded guilty to running a Ponzi Scheme for more than 20 years. More than 450 investors lost more than $77,000,000 in this fraudulent investment scam.
Castaldi convinced investors to invest in six month promissory notes that had yields of 10% to 15% and little or no risk. He also represented he [...]

By: Jack WaymirecloseAuthor: Jack Waymire Name: Jack Waymire
Email: jack@paladinregistry.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com
About: Jack writes for the InvestorWatchdog website and Worth magazine. He worked in the financial services industry from 1976 to 2004. For twenty of those years he was the president of a Registered Investment Advisory firm and a Broker/Dealer. Jack is the author of Who's Watching Your Money? The 17 Paladin Principles for Selecting a Financial Advisor and is a co-founder of PaladinRegistry.com.See Authors Posts (88) | August 27, 2009 | Illegal Schemes & Scams, Ponzi Schemes

As follow-up to a previous blog post James Davis, the former Chief Financial Officer at Stanford Financial Group, pleaded guilty to investment fraud and obstruction of justice charges. Davis said he and his co-conspirators defrauded thousands of investors when they sold them $7 billion of CDs that were issued by the Antiqua-based Stanford International Bank. [...]

By: Jack WaymirecloseAuthor: Jack Waymire Name: Jack Waymire
Email: jack@paladinregistry.com
Site: http://paladinregistry.com
About: Jack writes for the InvestorWatchdog website and Worth magazine. He worked in the financial services industry from 1976 to 2004. For twenty of those years he was the president of a Registered Investment Advisory firm and a Broker/Dealer. Jack is the author of Who's Watching Your Money? The 17 Paladin Principles for Selecting a Financial Advisor and is a co-founder of PaladinRegistry.com.See Authors Posts (88) | August 24, 2009 | Illegal Schemes & Scams, Ponzi Schemes

Gary Hutcheson pleaded guilty to operating a Ponzi scheme in Macon, Georgia. He and an accomplice defrauded 50 investors, including prominent doctors, attorneys and church members, of millions of dollars when he told them their assets would be invested in a hedge fund named Georgia Ionics Fund, LLC.
Some of the investors knew Hutcheson 30 years [...]