What do you think?
Rate this book
Ponzi Scheme: The Conman Who Fooled Himself
Charles Ponzi was born in Italy in 1882 to a poor family. His mom was tied to the Duchy of Parma (a noble title founded in the 16th century), but by the time Charles was born, the money was all gone. As Ponzi started growing up, His mom would always tell him about their family long lost riches. Charles mom planted a seed in Charles that he would be the one to restore the family name and lift them back up to their rightful place in society. This idea stuck with Ponzi until the end of his life.
Charles Ponzi arrived the United states and quickly learned English, he got a work as a dishwasher at a restaurant and was so broke that he slept on the floor because he couldn’t afford to pay the rent.
In order to make it big, Ponzi had different ideas; firstly, he published his own magazine which failed, he tried to work with a coupon but never developed the ideas after much rejection. He then formed “Securities Exchange Company” or SEC, where he promised to give back investors 50 % interest after 40 days. With this offer, everyone wanted to give Ponzi their money. The conman was so smart with his scheme that when he halted the collection of money, there was outbreaks of violence outside his office, and people forced themselves into the building through the windows.
The New York Times once said that among all the people Ponzi managed to fool, he had fooled himself most of all.
This is the story of Charles Ponzi, the wizard of lies who fell for his own scheme.
Charles Ponzi arrived the United states and quickly learned English, he got a work as a dishwasher at a restaurant and was so broke that he slept on the floor because he couldn’t afford to pay the rent.
In order to make it big, Ponzi had different ideas; firstly, he published his own magazine which failed, he tried to work with a coupon but never developed the ideas after much rejection. He then formed “Securities Exchange Company” or SEC, where he promised to give back investors 50 % interest after 40 days. With this offer, everyone wanted to give Ponzi their money. The conman was so smart with his scheme that when he halted the collection of money, there was outbreaks of violence outside his office, and people forced themselves into the building through the windows.
The New York Times once said that among all the people Ponzi managed to fool, he had fooled himself most of all.
This is the story of Charles Ponzi, the wizard of lies who fell for his own scheme.
17 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 29, 2022
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
No one has reviewed this book yet.