http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/viewpoints/stories/DN-chilton_02edi.State.Edition1.260ecf2.html
Bart Chilton: Take-aways from the Madoff mess
05:23 PM CDT on Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Now that Bernard Madoff seems destined to die in prison, what should we think about the rampant Ponzimonium going on all over the world? It seems there are a few lessons to be learned lessons for regulators, investors and the scam artists themselves.
Regulators: Tips about fraud, abuse or manipulation need to be taken as seriously as a heart attack. It doesn't matter how "connected" the person in question is. These Ponzi scams and other frauds are often perpetrated by folks whom we trust. Crooks can fit in, all too well, all too often. Madoff had been chairman of NASDAQ, of all things. He was an insider's insider. Nobody should be beyond suspicion by regulators when it comes to robbing people.
Investors: Due diligence needs to be fuel-injected every time you consider investing your money with someone. That means even with someone you have known for years or have a great deal of trust in. Regulators have caught countless criminals who take advantage of what we call "affinity fraud" that's where the crooks prey on people with whom they have something in common, like professions, ethnicity or religion.
Check out the location of the business in question. Ensure that it isn't simply a post office box or another mail drop. See if the firm or individual is registered with the National Futures Association or Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. Check with your federal regulator if you have questions about a particular person or entity. Or if you think you might have been scammed, call 1-866-FON-CFTC and talk with someone in our Commodity Futures Trade Commission offices.
Crooks: Don't even think about it. More investigators are looking at more leads than ever before. We are already working on twice as many Ponzi cases as we did in all of last year. We are also cooperating with fellow regulators across the globe, from Brazil to major cities in Europe and Asia to small Caribbean islands. We are looking at e-mails, listening to phone conversations and looking at financial records. Don't expect any mercy if we catch you.
Excerpted from a column by Bart Chilton, a Democratic commissioner on the Commodity Futures Trade Commission.
