Named after Charles Ponzi, who infamously bilked investors out of millions of dollars in the 1920s, a Ponzi scheme is an investment scam that involves the payment of abnormally high "returns" to investors that are actually paid from money...
investor protection guide
(Wex page)
Prime bank fraud is a type of investment scheme that promises extremely high yields over a short period of time. Individuals claim that they have access to secret financial products which they can buy at a discount and sell at a premium. In...
(Wex page)
In a promissory note scam, the individuals perpetrating the scam often stay behind the scenes. They persuade others to sell promissory notes by promising them large commissions. The individuals who sell the promissory notes to investors often...
(Wex page)
A pyramid scheme is an unsustainable, illegal business model where investment returns are typically from the principal of investments or membership fees instead of from the underlying investment gains. It is often marketed as a foolproof way...
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Systematic Investment Plans (SIP) are regulated as Periodic Investment Plans under the federal securities laws. The primary objective of a SIP is to enable investors to clearly define an investment goal and then to help them reach it. While...
(Wex page)
A viatical settlement (also known as a life settlement) is a sale of a life insurance policy of an insured person with an abbreviated life expectancy. Sellers are typically terminally ill patients who want to cash out of their life insurance...