Ponzi: The Financial Idiot Who Scammed the World
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The history of the Ponzi scheme, and the story of Charles Ponzi, the financial fraudster who became rich and infamous with his Ponzi scam that claimed people could get rich quick thanks to the arbitrage of IRCs. Ponzi promised very high returns to investors and soon millions of dollars were being invested by those looking to get rich as fast as possible. Imagine doubling your money with an investment in 90 days, and making money with no work. Well, it sounds too good to be true, because it was...
But there was a time when the financial world marvelled at the financial genius of Charles Ponzi, the man who was in charge of one of the most successful business investments in America. He had millions of dollars at his disposal and crowds of people lining up literally begging him to take their money. Little did everyone know that Ponzi’s business was built on nothing but lies. The whole thing was an outrageous scam, one which turned Ponzi into a very rich man, but ruined the lives of thousands of innocent people. Ponzi’s deception was so shocking and infamous that even now, a hundred years later, the scam still shares his name - the Ponzi scheme.
This video is the untold truth of the man behind the scam, Charles Ponzi - and how to make millions of dollars with nothing but lies. This is part of MagnatesMedia's series on financial fraudsters and get rich quick schemes - check out my video on Jho Low: The man who robbed an entire country for the first episode! #money #rich #scam #documentary #ponzi #finance #business #wealth #getrichquick #makemoney
00:00 Intro to The Ponzi Story
00:48 Chapter 1: Living Beyond His Means
02:24 Chapter 2: A Wake-up Call
05:17 Chapter 3: Back in America
10:06 Chapter 4: The Ponzi Scheme
14:13 Chapter 5: Highs and Lows
17:55 Chapter 6: The Dream Is Over
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nice
How can i afford any of it
Quality over quantity man, it feels like you are spamming out crap lately and it’s kind of irritating me I mean yeah the videos aren’t bad but stop picking such mainstream topics that literally everyone else does and already has done, like really man everybody knows about charles ponzi for gods sake the ponzi scheme is named after him, as I said in another comment patrick boyle imo did a much more in depth documentary on charles ponzi already, I would personally like to see less of the mainstream stuff everyone has already done and do the more obscure ones like the lego video you did, I would rather spend my time learning something interesting instead of watching something I already know
Awesome Job!
I thought 💭🤔 this was Moon 🌝🌜??!
Ponzi sounds like the personification of "Don't worry, this move is calculated.... but man, do I suck at math."
i suck at math
@@matthewmessam1186 I suck
He didn't even care about the math
Same
It's OK, you still got 0.00000001% probability to guess it right.
The fact that this guy never gave up is motivating.
If only he used all that confidence to work in a legitimate job maybe history would be different.
@@Rahul_Sastry yeah he should have consider a legal business. But legal business show late success most of the time. All he wanted was to get rich quick and he did, he didn't gave up.
Kinda the opposite for me. A lot of bad things could have been avoided if he'd had just a bit more doubt/skepticism in what he was doing. It makes me not want to make the same mistake he did.
@@IronicHavoc right
@@Rahul_Sastry you will never get rich working for someone else
Imagine how epic he'd be if he had social media like all the scammers and gurus today
Then he would have been selling bored apes
Lmao!
He wouldn't have done better than a dead dog too.
God bless you and Jesus loves you ❤
😂 I don't want to even imagine such a universe
It's actually quite a sad story. He apparently had so little self love that he needed the external validation of expensive stuff so bad he ended up ruining his marriage and spending years and years in jail.
Yep, people who blindly chase get-rich-quick schemes usually ruin their lives doing so
Greed. Not self love...greed.
It's actually a great lesson to learn here. I got sad at the end and was hoping he would at least keep his wife.
@@andreieminovici1894same :/
Too much self love is greed, no?
Ponzi was the living definition of no realizing that YOU are the problem in the situation
omg, Taylor Swift was right!!
minor spelling mistake
@@Jasper-qp6li realise is spelt differently in different countries
@@tomohawk2177 no
And his cult followers who he didn't like and were creeped out by still continued his madness of stealing the world's eyes. Leading to more financial ruin for EVERYONE!!!
The fact that people used his name to this day made everything worth it for him.
that's the wrong take
@@DesignByKirk People will die in destitute after scaming millions of people and people will really say they got what they wanted because you still use their name. The end of their life was miserable and awful? "Doesn't matter we still use their name they win."
Musk is the new ponzi
@@greenoftreeblackofblue6625 copium overdose
I don't know dude, I wouldn't like my name turned into a synonym for scam.
If you're going to run a scam, then the first million should always go to developing a good exit strategy. Set up a fake identity and everything ahead of time for when you inevitably need to run. Of course, most con artists that go big are initially successful because they have the confidence to believe it will never fail.
💀
Might as well not run a scam in the first place 💀
Sarah Howe in Boston (1870’s) is also in the running for the first Ponzi Scheme. She operated a bank for single women that promised 8% returns, but in reality was running a Ponzi scheme.
Ponzi schemes never Target those people who are already rich ...they always targeted those people who are exactly like him more dreams than common sense.....line was lit🔥
Kevin O'Leary was a recent victim of a Ponzi scheme
@@goldengold8568 ooh btw I don't have any idea about ...let me check
not really true as there have been wealthy people caught up in ponzi schemes just look at the rich that was caught up in madoff's ponzi scheme
Because rich people wouldn’t fall for thay
@@kingtaco1725 exactly
Honestly man, found this channel a month back and it is all I watch now. Incredibly done.
It's a great channel, try @JakeTran too
@@nainawambo1475 you kidding right?
@@julhizantwo2277 Nope
@@nainawambo1475 jake tran is a con man
@@tomfooIeryz any proof
y’all sleeping on the editing skills and story telling, this video is insane. New visuals every few seconds and the story telling is so good 10/10
How can i learn this type of editing?
@@harshu2651 my best advice is to play around with motion graphics on after effects and learn the smooth camera movement, just experiment
One of lessons I learn from this is basically, Luxury life is like hard drug, once taken and you don’t have legit way to sustain the grind for it, one can turn into desperate attempt to gain a bit of nectar of luxury.
For some people maybe but I only like making more than I make each year so I don't need to keep the luxuries. For what?
Exactly why its better to just abstain from luxury
WOW this comment is amazing. 👏 👏 Well said!
I was always curious as to where the name Ponzi Scheme came from. It's really interesting story watching him go from riches to rags back to riches just to complete lose everything.
Btw Charles Ponzi was born in my hometown, Lugo (RA) italy (30000 people) , it's pretty weird to think I'm from the same place 💀
i also wondered why its called the ponzi scheme!
What sucks is that this guy easily could have lived such a happy life if he had just kept his head cool. He was living in America, had a beautiful wife who loved him, and a strong work ethic. He could have had everything if he had just poured all of his ambition and motivation into a regular 9-5 job instead of his scheme.
A 9-5 is not for everyone, corporate slavery doesn’t make anyone happy
@@TripleOhSeven Many people, especially nowadays, would be happy to have financial Independence, home ownership, and a long-term romantic partner. I was saying that Ponzi sacrificed good at the altar of perfection, and got nothing.
@@TripleOhSeven Still better than living in jail for half of your adulthood time 😂
@@michaelfjmusic Working a regular job eats your soul
Either u risk everything or live like economic slave
The fact that he actually lived his dream though short, shows that we can achieve whatever we desire. But reality will always test the integrity of our results. That's why we'd rather stay on a safe side when reality checkmates our effort.
Couldn’t have said it better myself
If you make enough money to bribe the right officials, those integrity checks never come....
His dream is the fucked up part, scamming people isn't noble.
@@turkeyherder9456 he didnt dream of scamming people, he wanted to be rich by any means necesary and he was, for a short time
Ponzi is the type of guy to unironically say that he doesn’t lose but only fails to win
Oversimplified reference
Thank you for the video. By the end of it, it's sad how little Mr. Ponzi managed to accomplish. He spent so many years in prison, and the moment that made him famous forever only lasted 6 months. Somehow, I feel bad for him. It's like he wasted his life chasing riches instead of doing anything fulfilling. I guess he got as far as he could in life being dishonest and stupid. Poor guy.
Absolutely not. He deserved everything he got. He ruined tons innocent peoples lives.
don't feel bad. He asked for it
Well if anything the his name will forever be immortalized in the history books
You feel bad for him?! What is wrong with you?!
@@fer1306 absolute society moment
This video made me feel like dreaming to succeed doesn't always work out . But this was nice content, also taught me not to drop out of school for no reason and live a fake life, create a legitimate business that really solves a problem and just keep pushing p the right way.
what do you mean? I thought you can't even become a millionaire, if you don't drop out of school. like people who dropped out are always more successful than the ones that never started it.
@@laszlobandi6456 some of the most successful people have dropped out of school but majority of people that drop out (especially without direction or a goal) don’t end up successful
@@laszlobandi6456that’s mostly copium from people who couldn’t finish school
@@laszlobandi6456 It doesn't apply to everyone that drops out of school, for most people it's better to take the safe route, just graduate properly and you have less to worry about.
I'm just busting your balls, nowadays it sounds like a step one, it's a meme at this point, how people got their million dollar idea while their life was so 'hard'.
I once almost almost lost a fortune for the scheme. Thank god I consulted my dad and explained him that thing. He immediately smelled it and told me what it is.
This man worked so hard to be a scammer and lost years of his life as opposed to just making an honest living at the very least honourably but with a clean reputation
But he had MANY "honest" jobs in his life. But they were all menial and didn't pay. His real problem was that he could neither get honest jobs that paid well, nor could he move up high enough in his jobs to get paid better. His hard work wasn't paying off. Basically, he had the same problem back then that most employees are having today. His biggest problem was being nothing special. He was just desperate, delusional, and determined enough to live in his own reality instead of settling into a bleak life by accepting the cards he was dealt.
Charles should’ve just been a banker, then it’d alllllll be legal!
Oh love it!!
JPMorgan
This man was so good There is a scam named after him!
The FED is a giant Ponzi scheme but no one cares, until the USD collapses in 2025
The ponzi scheme is wat different from the MADOFF Scheme
@@robertwalker5521 same with FTX, stock market, Citadel, ...
He was so bad there is a scamme named after him
He was so bad that he was quickly caught
It's actually so hard to improve videos like yours, but you manage to slide in some stuff and the overall quality is way better. You are a genius
When you value people based off how much money people have, this is what you get. Someone with big dreams that achieved them but did so by causing a whole lot of pain to others. In our society it doesnt matter how good or heroic you are, it matters how much money you have to show for it in the end. You can be a hero but never be rich, and you can be rich but never help a single soul Some see a fair playing field, all I see is a warzone
yeah people talk about value but I see people trying to exploit each other
Ofcourse but you will go into history as a nothing if you are a standard millionaire who cares about nothing. We still respect and honour the people who legitimately helped the world and these people would be a legacy. Ofcourse rich people go into history books too but the better they did the better they will be remembered.
Ua are treu, it feels like evryone destroy each other for money, everyone is becoming slave to it
@@X-zone-ytIf there existed a button that gave you a million dollars everytime you pressed it, but killed a person at the same time, would you press it? And if so, how many times would you press it?
i would not press it at all bro@@burgernthemomrailer
Your voice, story telling, and video production is so good even that advertisement in the middle looked like it was a part of the ponzi scheme
I swear this is one of the most bingeable channels I found. Quick vid request? Maybe a company such as BIC, slightly smaller industry leaders, would be awesome!
I'm addicted to your channel now lol found it last night, and I'm binging your videos. Your production quality is unreal man, keep up the good work.
I love how whenever someone is thinking or devising a plan a bunch of e=mc squares just fly around
After seeing what happened with FTX and SBF it seems there’s a lot of parallels between SBF and Mr. Ponzi! History doesn’t repeat itself but it often rhymes…
im half way through this video and i feel like im full in debt
Very interesting and fascinating story, there should be a movie about him! Can’t believe there hasn’t been one yet.
From the Wikipedia article: Ponzi granted one last interview to an American reporter, telling him, "Even if they never got anything for it, it was cheap at that price. Without malice aforethought, I had given them the best show that was ever staged in their territory since the landing of the Pilgrims! It was easily worth fifteen million bucks to watch me put the thing over."
3.5 years only after stealing all that money, the judges are too good with him
That’s why you steal from the poor not the rich.
This presentation was simply outstanding. I just lately become aware of your channel. Your brilliance and capacity to convey complicated ideas in an understandable way are amazing. I'm amazed.
Dude's not an idiot, he's smart enough to trick the stupid investors into giving him their money 🤑💰. Dude's slick.
This is one of my favorite channels on youtube, the editing, the story telling, everything. I feel like i’m on youtube premium
You can’t help yourself to at least admire this mens grind.
Yah, but still kinda pointless if you realize the stupid amount of work he put into deceiving people... he could've achieved just as much success (or more) by just being honest...?
@@sinistersweet Not necessarily. You can probably achieve a lot more “success” more quickly by cheating, except that it won’t be a long-term thing and you won’t be be adding value to the world. Being hard-working is not a guarantee of success, but cheating/scamming is a guarantee of failure.
Started at the bottom of the pyramid now we're here
He was kinda dumb tho
@@Dadscap that is incorrect, because since he didn't do anything honest how can you say he was more successful being a scammer? The dude went to prison how many times....trust me--not worth it.
Your editing and storytelling are better every video, can't wait to see you at a million subs in the coming months!
I have to say, this video was incredibly entertaining and informative! I was leaning in to every detail of your narration.
Man got Saul Goodman as a lawyer
OMG. The editing skills in this video are just unbelievable. I personally edit the videos and this is just amazing!
That is why, ladies and gentlemen, you need a solid businessmodel that adds value to the world. Truth always wins at the end.
ROUTZEDO model the answer
i like this video, not only very informative and interesting content but the style.of editing and voice over makes it actively engaging!
I wish I had this kind of skill and intelligence to pull something like this off. I'd love to go down in history as a man who tricked the entire world.
He was persistent that’s for sure lol
At first I was hesitant to subscribe because I thought you just made duplicate content but after watching some I noticed you always elevate the content; you raise the bar
So true, 100% raises the bar with not just the visual but how it sells the story! Love this channel
Thanks
Bro didn't even get a heart😢
Just found this channel today from this video and man can I say outstanding work.
your editing is just epic, just 'wow' i always learn something new from every video!!
Wow this man was tenacious, he just wouldn't hear a no from the universe, time after time... great video!, i love them!!
And he got exactly what he deserved for it. Made me smile.
You know you’ve made it financially when a crime is named after you
Not really, you got nothing but the name. It's not worth it .
Yeah he can def hear us while being dead 6 feet under
@@ok4350He probably reincarnated a few times
Honestly I gotta say you explained the scheme really well which I'm really glad about
❤5th 🎉mrg
Is this whole video edited in After Effects? Absolutely insane work, if not some of the best on the entire platform.
So that’s where the phrase “ponzi scheme” came from😂
You'd think after like the 6th time he got arrested for scamming people he would at least come up with less illegal ways to scam people.
Never seen such quality in editing in anything other than movies
The editing in this video is absolutely amazing, I was genuinely shocked by the amount of subscribers this channel had not that it's low but the quality of this vid set my expectations to be very high this channel deserves alot more subscribers and attention!! ❤❤❤
Nice of you to cover SBF's extended family
This guys italian, not Jewish
Can we just appreciate the video and content quality 🔥🔥🔥 feels like I'm watching a sci-fi movie. Claps for the team 👏👏👏
Honestly a gift he has was dealing with large sums of money. Many people can't even negotiate, or fathom owning hundreds of thousands and their own mind limits themselves. He was not limited by how much he thinks he should earn
He dreamt about more money when he was already rich only to become a beggar, and when he was a beggar be dreamt about money and became billionaire...
This story just shows how important honesty is in business
This video proves how much greed destroys one's life. Be content with what you have.
This is a perfect example of how greed can dip the blood off your arteries and veins. All legitimately successful and rich people are so, because they learnt to manage their greed and fear. It's a lesson that one must learn.
Brutal story man. This guy went through a lot!
A tough lot of his own making.
He went through a lot for what? Every single bad thing he experienced was totally his own fault
@@arrow1414 still
@@welennelew9866 still he went through a lot just bc he chased his dreams
@@josephleebob3828 and all he caused was nightmares.
John please always narrate your videos forever and hope you never sell out like Jake Wan, all your hard work will pay off! Your documentaries are Oscar worthy 😍God bless you! 🙏🏾
Who is Jake Wan?
@@fluffypineapple790 A Well known KZheadr who does documentaries on War , politics and business. He used to narrate his own videos but now he pays other people to do it and it doesn’t hit the same anymore
@@zoro8957 thanks for the answer!
Your story telling is great. You earned yourself another subscriber.
Moral of the story: if You want to loot a lot of people at once, don't expect for their mercy but feed their greed.
Bro grinded like his life depended on it, till it did
You put so much effort on a video. Hats off man 😇
90 seconds in and frankly I'm surprised the absolutely over-the-top editing wasn't leading to a punchline. It's genuinely how the video is done.
hey man, i thought i'd say this cuz nobody else wants to, but your editing is fucking amazing and you deserve every single cent you earn, i can tell you put your life and soul into this and all your other videos as well, subscribed!
They should make a top tier film about this man. Don't know which actor would portray him accurately
would really be top tier movie material, like catch me if you can
The fact that the Boston Post claimed he was a genius reminds me of what Lazerpig said about the Russian military. How were all the experts wrong about it? Because they weren't experts, the real experts knew all along how bad it is. Like with Ponzi, the real financial experts wanted nothing to do with his "business" while everyone else believed Ponzi was a financial expert.
No, no one knew what state the Russian military was in because of the massive corruption within that country. You realise not everyone who is wrong is wrong for the same reason right??
@@kurosakiichigo7475 or maybe they did that on purpose to fool the Russian government into not investigating into their military.
NAFO profile pic lmao a human definitely made this comment
@@cattlecumwewlad6941 glowies working overtime.
14:58 "more dreams than common sense"😂
If hes an "idiot" what should we call the ones who have fallen for his scam?
Victims.
His life is like a roller coaster!
yet, despite Ponzi's failure, he did teach one thing to his successors who did the same thing: get the cash and run before people catch on. a lesson he failed to learn from his former banker boss
I love you mate. I love every single thing about your videos. Every single thing. It teaches me there is much more to this world than just money.
I listened to this while driving back from a road trip, and oohhhh man! This thing is a movie! 🤯🎬
The production of these videos is top notch 👏🏼. Of course plus a great content
Ponzi was not an idiot. The way his investment worked wasn't a bug, but its feature.
The most relevant feature for Ponzi was how it got him sent to prison and penniless. He sounds like an idiot to me. Or someone with a particular mental defect, where he couldn't recognize his wild overoptimism bias no matter how many times he failed.
I really did think when you said so haha😆
Great story telling. What software did you use for editing? Top notch! 👌
After effects 3D camera mostly
These animations and transitions are just wonderful *-* great video
it’s wild bc it seems like if he was more flexible to pivoting and a bit more self confident he could have been a legitimate businessman
funny enough, the sponsor is also in the shipping business.
I am watching this while ads literally pop up that would have made Mr. P. blush.
Thanks! Love your work man
Another banger!!! You inspire me to do better with content!!!
Another great video mate. Seriously you’ve found the YT formula. Keep it up
Wow this is such a great video man the editing is amazing this is so good
He never gave up until he won and then lost it all
Kinda like FTX lol. Ponzi scheme in a way in terms of marketing through so many ytbers and social media outlets that no1 questioned them. Thanks for the vid magnates cos you've inspired me to post my own!
I actually didn't knew the term Ponzi scheme was a persons name, I thought it was just a saying in the financial world. Now watching this video, I can understand why the whole thing was named after him lol.
watching your videos ! made me think about how uneasy making this videos ! as an editer I understand your efforts on making this style of videos great job
i love your intros. i have a questiong from. who do draw your inspiration from to keep you fired up and making content. as i person i draw my inspiration from you
I hope after watching this that no one falls for the scambots talking to themselves in the comments about how they supposedly made insane money lol
oh my god and then a scambot replies to me lmao off I go to report and block again, until KZhead finally bothers to get smarter about catching them 🙄🤦♀😩
I hope they do. Anyone stupid enough to fall for those things deserves what they get. It's like a fiscal Darwin Award.
Bro the edition is UNbelievable!!!!!!