FOX Business’s Charlie Gasparino calls the story of Ponzi scheme architect Bernie Madoff an ‘incredible tragedy’ in an interview with ‘Your World’ on Wednesday, claiming that the reputation of the Nasdaq pioneer played a major role in its successful big investor of billions of dollars.
CHARLIE GASPARINO: It’s a mixed story and it’s an incredible tragedy. I covered Bernie Madoff before he said he was running a Ponzi scheme for over a million dollars when he was best known for creating the Nasdaq stock market. And he helped me with my book about Dick Grasso, the head of the New York Stock Exchange, and I think a competitor of his. And then I covered him up when this whole thing disappeared, I broke a lot of stories about the scam. And when he was in jail, I actually talked to him for a few years about his imprisonment. One of the interesting things about Bernie Madoff is how he went through all the tragedies he caused. If you had interviewed him before prison, you would not know that he was sitting on a powder keg of lies.
You start with a good name. Bernie Madoff was one of the founders of the Nasdaq. You start with the name and you have a reputation. Even when people start to feel that there is something wrong with this fund that, you know, is produced every year, it makes up eight percent, no matter what. I mean, it printed the same number every year. It was not big. It was not 50 percent returns, but it was eight percent, never a loss. You say, that can not be a lie. I mean, it’s Bernie Madoff … He looked at the regulators, the SEC, and came back several times.
They [victims] do not know much about investing … They rely on brokers who basically count on Madoff not being the scam because of what he was. His son-in-law worked for the SEC. I mean, if you think about it … can this guy really lie to everyone? Many people thought he was doing insider trading. He was always so calm and calm. What I found fascinating about him when I interviewed him when he was out of jail and I did a lot of good on FOXBusiness.com … is just how he was somewhat contemptuous of his victims. And it was as if he did not care. I mean, he had this kind of air over him, which, oh you know, what happened, I’m sorry – They [victims] got some of their money back.
WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW HERE