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Ponzi's Scheme

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Ponzi's Scheme

The True Story of a Financial Legend

Random House,

15 min read
9 take-aways
Text available

What's inside?

Hate people who fleece others to line their own pockets? Blame Ponzi – the guy who took the pyramid scam to new levels.

Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Engaging

Recommendation

Nowadays, the phrase "Ponzi scheme" is applied to everything from putrid boiler-room operations to the housing boom. That makes it instructive to take a look at the phrase’s actual namesake. Charles Ponzi was a con man, to be sure, but he also was a gifted promoter and cheerful dreamer who captured the shadiest side of the American spirit. In this fascinating, novelistic account of Ponzi’s meteoric rise and inevitable fall, journalist Mitchell Zuckoff painstakingly recreates the 1920 zeitgeist that allowed Ponzi to delude and scam so many investors. Times have changed, but the underlying human nature that allowed Ponzi to raise so much cash remains the same. getAbstract.com recommends this page-turning history to investors who want to be equipped to spot hype and scams designed to lure the gullible.

Summary

Seeking Streets Paved with Gold

The name of Charles Ponzi has become synonymous with financial chicanery. A penniless Italian immigrant, Ponzi drifted around the U.S. for years before launching his Securities Exchange Corporation, a scam that became famous for its audacity. Ponzi’s scam reached the peak of its popularity in 1920, a time when American attitudes toward wealth were changing. His money-for-nothing ethos struck a nerve in a society that was on the brink of the decade-long economic boom leading up to the Great Depression.

Ponzi was born in 1882 in Lugo, Italy. His family had claims to royalty, which suited the young Ponzi. He had ambitious dreams but no desire to work to achieve them. Ponzi, who grew to be only five feet and two inches tall, attended the University of Rome but flunked out after devoting his time to partying rather than studying. Embarrassed at having disappointed his mother, the 21-year-old Ponzi decided to set sail for the United States to seek his fortune. An uncle had promised him that the growing country’s streets were "paved with gold." During the voyage, Ponzi made an easy mark for experienced card players on the ship. Ponzi gambled...

About the Author

Mitchell Zuckoff is a professor of journalism at Boston University and a former reporter at The Boston Globe, where he was a Pulitzer Prize finalist. Zuckoff’s previous books include Choosing Naia and Judgment Ridge.

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