Global InformationMadoff investment scandal information
Bernard L. Madoff | |
|---|---|
 Madoff's mug shot, 2009 | |
| Occupation(s) | Stock broker, financial adviser at Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities (retired), former chairman of Nasdaq |
| Criminal status | Deceased (formerly inmate #61727-054 at FCI Butner Correctional Complex) |
| Conviction(s) | March 12, 2009 (pled guilty) |
| Criminal charge | Securities fraud, investment advisor trust fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, false statements, perjury, making false filings with the SEC, theft from an employee benefit plan |
| Penalty | 150 years in federal prison and $170 billion in restitution |
The Madoff investment scandal was a major case of stock and securities fraud discovered in late 2008.[1] In December of that year, Bernie Madoff, the former Nasdaq chairman and founder of the Wall Street firm Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, admitted that the wealth management arm of his business was an elaborate multi-billion-dollar Ponzi scheme.
Madoff founded Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC in 1960, and was its chairman until his arrest.[2][3][4] The firm employed Madoff's brother Peter as senior managing director and chief compliance officer, Peter's daughter Shana Madoff as rules and compliance officer and attorney, and Madoff's sons Mark and Andrew. Peter was sentenced to 10 years in prison, and Mark died by suicide exactly two years after his father's arrest.
Alerted by his sons, federal authorities arrested Madoff on December 11, 2008. On March 12, 2009, Madoff pleaded guilty to 11 federal crimes and admitted to operating the largest Ponzi scheme in history.[5][6] On June 29, 2009, he was sentenced to 150 years in prison, the maximum sentence allowed, with restitution of $170 billion. He died in prison in 2021.[7]
According to the original federal charges, Madoff said that his firm had "liabilities of approximately US$50 billion."[8][9] Prosecutors estimated the size of the fraud to be $64.8 billion, based on the amounts in the accounts of Madoff's 4,800 clients as of November 30, 2008.[10][11] Ignoring opportunity costs and taxes paid on fictitious profits, about half of Madoff's direct investors lost no money.[12] Harry Markopolos, a whistleblower whose repeated warnings about Madoff were ignored, estimated that at least $35 billion of the money Madoff claimed to have stolen never really existed, but was simply fictional profits he reported to his clients.[13]
Investigators determined that others were involved in the scheme.[14] The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was criticized for not investigating Madoff more thoroughly; questions about his firm had been raised as early as 1999. The legitimate trading arm of Madoff's business that was run by his two sons was one of the top market makers on Wall Street, and in 2008 was the sixth-largest.[15]
Madoff's personal and business asset freeze created a chain reaction throughout the world's business and philanthropic community, forcing many organizations to at least temporarily close, including the Robert I. Lappin Charitable Foundation, the Picower Foundation, and the JEHT Foundation.[16][17][18]
- ^ "Press Release: SEC Charges Bernard L. Madoff for Multi-Billion Dollar Ponzi Scheme; 2008-293; Dec. 11, 2008". www.sec.gov. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
- ^ "The Madoff Case: A Timeline". The Wall Street Journal. March 6, 2009. Retrieved March 6, 2009.
- ^ David Glovin (February 11, 2009). "Madoff Prosecutors Get 30 More Days for Indictment". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved February 11, 2009.
- ^ DeStefano, Anthony M. (March 7, 2009). "Madoff expected to plead guilty in Ponzi scheme". Newsday. Retrieved March 7, 2009. [dead link]
- ^ Bray, Chad (March 12, 2009). "Madoff Pleads Guilty to Massive Fraud". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones, Inc. Retrieved October 16, 2015.
- ^ "Biggest Fraud in History $50 billion Madoff Ponzi Scheme". December 13, 2008.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
deathwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "SEC Charges Bernard L. Madoff for Multi-Billion Dollar Ponzi Scheme (2008–293)". SEC.gov. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. December 11, 2008. Retrieved December 11, 2008.
- ^ Randall, David (December 14, 2008). "Rich investors 'wiped out' by Wall Street fraud". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on December 14, 2008. Retrieved December 17, 2008.
- ^ "US Prosecutors updated the size of Madoff's scheme from $50 billion to $64 billion". Reuters. March 11, 2009. Retrieved April 26, 2009.
- ^ Hipwell, Deirdre (December 12, 2008). "Wall Street legend Bernard Madoff arrested over '$50 billion Ponzi scheme'". Times Online. London: Times Newspapers Ltd. Retrieved December 13, 2008.
- ^ Prosecutors say half of Bernie Madoff's investors lost nothing in Ponzi scheme, a September 23, 2009 article from the New York Daily News. Retrieved September 23, 2009.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
NoOnewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Caruso, David (December 18, 2008). "Madoff Investigators Look for Partners". AOL. Associated Press. Archived from the original on September 22, 2018. Retrieved December 23, 2008.
- ^ Lieberman, David; Pallavi Gogoi; Theresa Howard; Kevin McCoy; Matt Krantz (December 15, 2008). "Investors remain amazed over Madoff's sudden downfall". USA Today. Retrieved December 24, 2008.
- ^ Appelbaum, Binyamin; David S. Hilzenrath; Amit R. Paley (December 13, 2008). "All Just One Big Lie". The Washington Post. Washington Post Company. p. D01. Retrieved December 12, 2008.
- ^ "Madoff Wall Street fraud threatens Jewish philanthropy". Retrieved December 13, 2008.
- ^ Henriques, Diana B.; Berenson, Alex (December 13, 2008). "For Investors, Trust Lost, and Money Too". The New York Times. Retrieved December 13, 2008.