Ponzi Schemes

Charles Ponzi

Charles Ponzi – From whom these get-rich-quick schemes got its name

Malaysia is well-known to be fertile ground for Ponzi games

We really don’t need such fame

We have enough of Swisscash Genneva and Ufun

Losing your hard-earned savings is not fun.

 

Ponzi schemes play on human greed

For on it they breed

Using high returns as their baits

They lure investors to make their bets.

 

A Ponzi scheme pays returns to earlier investors with funds from new investors

With a portion of the incoming funds going into the pockets of the perpetrators

The illusion of sustainability can be maintained

As long as funds from new investors can be obtained.

 

Ponzi schemes don’t look the same and come in disguises

High-yield investment programmes and hedge futures trading are some of the guises

In true Darwinian style devious scammers are consistently evolving their games

Coming up with new schemes with legitimate-sounding names.

 

It is common for perpetrators to take advantage of a lack of investor knowledge

Or claiming to use a secret proprietary strategy that gives them an edge

Using high-tech bells and whistles to lure their prey

The get-rich-quick scheme proves too alluring not to play.

 

The basic premise of a Ponzi scheme is like robbing Peter to pay Paul

It will collapse once the scheme has taken its toll

Once red flags start to appear

The heartbreaking end is near.

 

The bait is always the same and the outcome is inevitable

The perpetrators get the easy money off the table

Most people who buy into Ponzi schemes eventually lose not only their investments

Friendship may be lost because of their abetment.