In December 2008, with financial crisis sweeping America and the globe, Bernard "Bernie" Madoff, a leading Wall Street figure and former chairman of the NASDAQ Stock Market, dropped the bombshell: For years he would bilked thousands of investors worldwide to the tune of $50 billion. Overnight, the term "Ponzi scheme" a fraudulent investment strategy that pays returns to early investors with money invested later by others became synonymous with Madoff's name. In the first comprehensive account of this epic scandal, Peter Sander traces Madoff's rise from unremarkable Jewish schoolboy to Wall Street trader, from money maker to money manager. His gripping narrative examines how Madoff built his brand, how he infiltrated influential circles, and how the scheme came unravelled.