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A stockbroker earns $12 million in three minutes, possesses a fortune of billions at the age of 31, and wanders and sinks into the intoxication of wealth and the edge of the law. This is a plot in the movie "The Wolf of Wall Street" and also a memoir of a person. Yes, the Wolf of Wall Street is him—Jordan Belfort, the prototype, a person with no financial background and only a high school diploma. Despite lacking a background, he managed to rise in the world of finance. How did he do it? Let's find out together!
From a young age, Belfort displayed a business acumen beyond the ordinary, always able to seize small business opportunities to make money with meticulous insight. After abandoning his studies to venture into the world, he worked as a top-notch sales champion and started his own company. However, due to lack of experience, the company collapsed in less than a year, leaving him burdened with massive debts. But this did not dampen Belfort's ambition. He set his sights on the heart of American finance—Wall Street, a place teeming with speculative opportunities and a fervent desire for wealth among stockbrokers. After obtaining his first stockbroker license with great difficulty, he faced the crash of the entire European stock market on his first day at work, known as "Black Monday." His company went under, and he found himself unemployed.
After losing his job, he joined a small company dealing in penny stocks that would change his destiny. Selling penny stocks to vulnerable groups is illegal under U.S. law and constitutes classic financial fraud. However, for every share of penny stock sold, he could pocket half of the exorbitant commission. Driven by desire, he began selling these penny stocks to those vulnerable groups eager to get rich overnight. After making money, he not only cleared his previous debts but also accumulated a substantial amount. Seeing the business opportunity, he chose to resign again, set up his own business, and sold penny stocks. However, selling junk stocks to vulnerable groups was illegal, and wealthy individuals would not buy junk stocks. So, he registered and founded Stratton Oakmont to target the wealthiest 1% in America. Using blue-chip stocks as bait to lure the rich and then pitching junk stocks, he amassed great wealth. However, he gradually lost himself in the empire he had built.
With such a massive operation, how could he not attract attention? Moreover, the investigator pursuing him, Denham, was an expert in money laundering crimes. After collecting a series of evidence, Belfort was officially arrested. Overnight, he lost everything. The company went bankrupt, the government seized his multi-million-dollar fortune, and his wife filed for divorce. Fortunately, he decided to redeem himself, actively cooperating with the federal government's investigation and voluntarily collecting information on his partners. This allowed him to be freed from a 30-year prison sentence, reduced to only 4 years. He later turned his experiences into a book, which was eventually adapted into the film "The Wolf of Wall Street" by the renowned Hollywood director. Now, he not only gives free lectures at various universities, warning students not to cross the legal bottom line but also returns to his original profession, providing sales training. |
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