Scams and Fraud: The World’s Worst 5 Cases

No. 1: The Ponzi Schemes

Photo Credit: tpholland

Throughout history, there have been countless Ponzi schemes, but where did it all begin? Italian native Charles Ponzi managed the performance of having a scam named after him. Eager to become rich at any cost, Ponzi devised a scheme where he promised people he would double their investments in a time frame of 90 days. The scam worked for a while, until investors and federal agents became suspicious of Ponzi’s activities and discovered his elaborate fraud. Everyone who invested in the scheme ended up losing every last cent.