Tag: Ponzi scheme

Read Unicorn, e-scooter startup from co-creator of Tile, shuts down with no money for refunds (The Verge)
The company had "totally failed as a business," the CEO said in an email.
This is deplorable behavior. Paying users shouldn’t have to foot the bill. It should be the financial responsibility of the company, its board, and its executives to do better than this. Startups shouldn’t structure their company like a Ponzi scheme and doing so sets a terrible precedent.

📺 Fyre Fraud (2019) | Hulu

Watched Fyre Fraud (2019) from Hulu
Directed by Jenner Furst, Julia Willoughby Nason. With Bella Hadid, Ja Rule, Billy McFarland, Cameron Davison. Concert promoters and rapper Ja Rule advertise a high-end festival experience that fails spectacularly when they don't plan for the infrastructure to support the venue, artists and guests.
When the two competing documentaries came out, I don’t think I ever really heard a reason why there were two other than the fact that the story was so over-the-top, blatant, and salacious. I’m glad I saw this one first as it indicates that the other documentary was made by Jerry Media, an entity that was involved in promoting and profiting from the Fyre Festival. Of course I want to dig into the background of the producers of this one now too to see what their ties may be. Always vet your sources, even for documentaries that present themselves as detached from the story.

This does a great job of showing cultural excess. At least the founder was put into jail before he had a chance to run for president…

👓 Investors say ex-‘Fox & Friends’ host turned them into unwitting slumlords | Indianapolis Star

Read Investors say ex-‘Fox & Friends’ host turned them into unwitting slumlords by (Indianapolis Star)
Clayton Morris, a former Fox News co-host, is accused of selling novice investors uninhabitable rental properties.
I remember watching a couple of Clayton’s Periscope videos a few years back (about the time his wife Natali was leaving C|Net and the Buzz Out Loud podcast) and thinking he was a bit too credulous and even “off” at the time. I really couldn’t tell what he was selling at the time except for himself. This story doesn’t surprise me in the least. The piece overall is some tremendously interesting and solid journalism.

A quick Google search on “Clayton Morris” shows that this scandal hasn’t caught up with him. Only about two hits in the top twenty mention this issue, so he could potentially be profiting from his alleged scheme.

👓 ‘Bitcoin is my potential pension’: What’s driving people in Kentucky to join the craze | The Washington Post

Read ‘Bitcoin is my potential pension’: What’s driving people in Kentucky to join the craze by Chico Harlan (Washington Post)
The possibility of a windfall lures many who see themselves in a financial rut.
This is just painful to read and feels all too much like a Ponzi scheme gone wrong. Sadly, the reportage doesn’t take a direct stance, so some are more likely to read this and think that it’s an actual investment scheme to be dabbled with. If it were a realistic currency, then having a relatively constant value would be a key feature.

I came across this from Paul Krugman’s tweet which is all too apt: