Ponzi schemesPyramid fraud

Index

• What is a Ponzi scheme/pyramid fraud?

• Setting up an investment fraud based on a Ponzi Scheme (in 5 steps)

• Questions

What is a Ponzi scheme/pyramid fraud? • Offering investment products with extreme

high returns in investments that actually don’t exist

• They don’t invest the money, but pay the promised returns with the investors own money

• The money of new investors is being used to pay the old investors

Examples

Setting up an investment fraud based on a Ponzi Scheme (in 5 steps)

1. Establish• Buy 4 BV’s, 1 of them managing the other 3• No legal permission needed• No annual report required• You can use terms as ‘the financial holding

guarantees your investment’• Bentinck & van Rooij investments

2. Collect• Advertise• Make a deal with Harry Mens• Investments larger than € 50.000 aren’t

controlled by the AFM• Avoid the AFM by joining investments smaller

than € 50.000 together in emissions

3. Transfer the money• Transfer the money to foreign businesses • Invest a small part of the money• Give your investors (manipulated) information

on that investment

4. Maintain • Keep the dream alive for as long as possible– Keep paying their promised returns– Keep selling, you need new investors

• In the mean time keep transferring money to foreign businesses

5. Collapse & spend• The amount of new investors gets too small• The pyramid collapses• It’s best to leave to a country without an

extradition treaty with the Netherlands, like;

Thailand Brazil

Questions?

Sources:• Quote, April 2009• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzi_scheme• www.google.com