The most infamous scam in history
3 mins
This Pack is all about how to spot dodgy deals. We’ll show you the lessons you can learn from history’s biggest scams – like Charles Ponzi and Bernie Madoff – so that you can avoid falling prey yourself.
Who was this Ponzi guy? Let’s go back to the New York of 1920. The roaring twenties a.k.a. the era of excess has just begun. Charles Ponzi wanted in on the fun and came up with an excellent idea for a business. Or so he thought...
Back then, when you sent a letter abroad, you'd often include an “international reply coupon” that could be exchanged for stamps in the recipient's country so they could reply to you. Crafty Ponzi realized that in some countries the cost of a coupon was less than the price of US stamps, so he could buy coupons in Italy, redeem them for stamps, then sell the
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