Stamp Millionaire

"The Stamp Millionaire – The man who gave his name to the pyramid scheme" is the biography of Charles Ponzi. In 1920, this charming Italian immigrant in Boston discovered a loophole: International Reply Coupons (IRC). These were postal vouchers that could be bought cheaply in Europe and exchanged for expensive stamps in the US. Financial writer William Carter details how Ponzi promised investors a 50% return in 45 days. It was mathematically impossible to trade enough coupons to pay everyone, so he simply used the money from new investors to pay the old ones. The scheme lasted only months but took in millions. "The Stamp Millionaire" explores the psychology of greed. It explains why people suspended disbelief (even the police invested!) and how Ponzi's legacy lives on in every financial fraud from Madoff to crypto scams. It is a timeless reminder that if it sounds too good to be true, it is.