JORDAN BELFORT Biography
JORDAN BELFORT Biography / Background
Nicknamed "the Wolf of Wall Street," Jordan Belfort made millions in the 1990s through his investment company, Stratton Oakmont. His memoir is the basis for the 2013 Martin Scorsese film The Wolf of Wall Street, starring Leonardo Dicapro.
Born in Queens, New York, on July 9, 1962, Jordan Belfort had a natural talent as a salesman at an early age, operating a meat and seafood business in the 1980s. After that company went bust, Belfort began selling stocks in 1987. He was running his own investment operation, Stratton Oakmont, by 1989. The company made millions illegally, defrauding its investors. The Securities Exchange Commission began efforts to stop the company's errant ways in 1992. In 1999, Belfort pleaded guilty to securities fraud and money laundering. He was sentenced in 2003 to four years in prison, but only served 22 months. Belfort published his first memoir, The Wolf of Wall Street, in 2008. The following year, he released Catching the Wolf of Wall Street.
Early Life and Career
Born on July 9, 1962, in Queens, New York, Jordan Ross Belfort became infamous for his role in swindling millions of dollars from investors in the 1990s through his investment firm, Stratton Oakmont. The son of an accountant, Belfort grew up in a modest apartment in Queens. A natural salesman, he eventually launched a business selling meat and seafood, but the company soon went belly up.
In 1987, Belfort put his sales skills to use in a different arena. He started working for a brokerage firm, learning in the ins and outs of being a stock broker. Two years later, Belfort was operating his own trading company, Stratton Oakmont.
'The Wolf of Wall Street'
With his partner, Danny Porush, Jordan Belfort raked in cash using a "pump and dump" scheme. His brokers pushed stocks onto their unsuspecting clients, which helped inflate the stocks' prices, then the company would sell off its own holdings in these stocks at a great profit.
Awash with cash,
Nicknamed "the Wolf of Wall Street," Jordan Belfort made millions in the 1990s through his investment company, Stratton Oakmont. His memoir is the basis for the 2013 Martin Scorsese film The Wolf of Wall Street, starring Leonardo Dicapro.
Born in Queens, New York, on July 9, 1962, Jordan Belfort had a natural talent as a salesman at an early age, operating a meat and seafood business in the 1980s. After that company went bust, Belfort began selling stocks in 1987. He was running his own investment operation, Stratton Oakmont, by 1989. The company made millions illegally, defrauding its investors. The Securities Exchange Commission began efforts to stop the company's errant ways in 1992. In 1999, Belfort pleaded guilty to securities fraud and money laundering. He was sentenced in 2003 to four years in prison, but only served 22 months. Belfort published his first memoir, The Wolf of Wall Street, in 2008. The following year, he released Catching the Wolf of Wall Street.
Early Life and Career
Born on July 9, 1962, in Queens, New York, Jordan Ross Belfort became infamous for his role in swindling millions of dollars from investors in the 1990s through his investment firm, Stratton Oakmont. The son of an accountant, Belfort grew up in a modest apartment in Queens. A natural salesman, he eventually launched a business selling meat and seafood, but the company soon went belly up.
In 1987, Belfort put his sales skills to use in a different arena. He started working for a brokerage firm, learning in the ins and outs of being a stock broker. Two years later, Belfort was operating his own trading company, Stratton Oakmont.
'The Wolf of Wall Street'
With his partner, Danny Porush, Jordan Belfort raked in cash using a "pump and dump" scheme. His brokers pushed stocks onto their unsuspecting clients, which helped inflate the stocks' prices, then the company would sell off its own holdings in these stocks at a great profit.
Awash with cash,