Oh My Fraud Pyramid Schemes: How to Lose Friends and Alienate Money
You’ve probably heard of pyramid schemes, but are you confident that you know what it is? And if you are, do you know the difference between them and multi-level marketing companies? Or Ponzi schemes? In this episode, Caleb and Greg discuss all that and more about one of the simplest and most common frauds around.
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- (00:00) - Introduction to Pyramid Schemes
- (01:01) - Welcome to Oh My Fraud
- (02:00) - Caleb's Personal Experiences with MLMs
- (07:32) - Understanding Pyramid Schemes
- (09:45) - Ponzi Schemes Explained
- (17:12) - Multi-Level Marketing Companies
- (22:10) - NuSkin: A Case Study
- (30:11) - Introduction to Blessings in No Time
- (34:24) - Personal Experience with a Pyramid Scheme
- (51:40) - Conclusion and Takeaways
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CONNECT WITH THE HOSTS
Greg Kyte, CPA
Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregkyte
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkyte/
Caleb Newquist
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cnewquist
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/calebnewquist/
Email us at ohmyfraud@earmarkcpe.com
Sources:
The history of pyramid schemes and their evolution over time — Medium
Pyramid scheme — Wikipedia
MLMs vs. Pyramid Schemes: One Is Legal, But the Other Could Land You in Prison — Coolidge Law Firm
The Case (for and) against Multi-level Marketing — FTC
Get-Rich-Quick Profiteers Love Mitt Romney, and He Loves Them Back — Mother Jones
Couple Charged for Operating Multimillion-Dollar Pyramid Scheme — DOJ
Bernie Madoff and how to identify a Ponzi scheme. — Metis Ireland
Tupperware once changed women's lives. Now it struggles to survive — NPR
What Is Multi-Level Marketing? — Forbes
Don’t Fall Victim to the False Promises of MLMs. - The Daily Utah Chronicle
Prosper DJ, wife ordered to pay $10.7 million for pyramid scheme targeting black investors — Dallas Morning News