Jordan Belfort’s Net Worth: The Downfall Of The “Wolf Of Wall Street”

Jordan Belfort, once a high-flying American stockbroker and now a convicted felon, has a net worth of negative $100 million. Famously known as “The Wolf of Wall Street,” a nickname he coined while writing his memoir in jail, Belfort’s life has been a cautionary tale of greed, fraud, and the severe consequences that follow. Although his story was glamorized in the 2013 film The Wolf of Wall Street, directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio, the reality of Belfort’s actions left thousands of victims in financial ruin.

Early Life

Jordan Ross Belfort was born on July 9, 1962, in The Bronx, New York, and raised in Bayside, Queens, in a Jewish family. He demonstrated an early knack for business, earning $20,000 selling Italian ice on the beach during the summer between high school and college. He graduated from American University with a degree in biology but quickly abandoned his plans to become a dentist after realizing it wasn’t a lucrative career path.

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Belfort’s first venture into business was selling meat and seafood door-to-door on Long Island, New York. His business grew rapidly, but after filing for bankruptcy at the age of 25, he transitioned into the world of stockbroking. After a brief stint at L.F. Rothschild, where he was laid off following the 1987 Black Monday crash, Belfort learned the ins and outs of the finance industry and eventually founded Stratton Oakmont in the early 1990s. The firm employed over 1,000 stockbrokers at its peak and managed over $1 billion in assets. However, its success was built on fraudulent practices that would eventually lead to its downfall.

The Rise and Fall of Stratton Oakmont

Between 1989 and 1996, Jordan Belfort operated the financial firm Stratton Oakmont, which became notorious for its pump-and-dump schemes. These fraudulent activities defrauded hundreds of millions of dollars from thousands of innocent investors, many of whom could not afford the losses. In 1999, Belfort and his co-founder Danny Porush were indicted on charges of securities fraud and money laundering. They both pleaded guilty, and in exchange for cooperating with prosecutors, their sentences were reduced.

Restitution and Legal Battles

During his reign at Stratton Oakmont, Belfort swindled approximately $200 million from 1,513 victims. At his 2003 sentencing, he was ordered to repay $110 million in restitution and serve four years in prison. However, his sentence was reduced to 22 months due to his cooperation with the FBI, where he wore a wire to incriminate former partners and associates.

Despite being ordered to pay 50% of his gross income towards restitution, Belfort has only repaid a fraction of what he owes. By 2013, the U.S. government adjusted his repayment plan to a minimum of $10,000 per month for life. To date, Belfort has only repaid approximately $13-14 million, with most of that sum coming from the sale of property seized at his sentencing. He still owes his victims roughly $100 million.

Inventing the “Wolf of Wall Street” Nickname

The nickname “The Wolf of Wall Street” was not something Belfort was called during his time in finance; it was a moniker he gave himself while writing his memoir from jail. His cellmate, Tommy Chong, allegedly encouraged him to write the book that would later become the basis for the 2013 film. The title and subsequent film have cemented Belfort’s infamy, but they also misrepresent the true impact of his actions on his victims. The 2000 movie Boiler Room, which was loosely based on Belfort and Stratton Oakmont, provides a more accurate portrayal of the devastating effects of financial fraud on its victims.

Life After Prison

Since his release from prison, Jordan Belfort has reinvented himself as a motivational speaker, founding Global Motivation, Inc. He travels extensively, delivering speeches on business ethics and the lessons he claims to have learned from his mistakes. However, his speeches have been met with mixed reviews, with some criticizing his continued focus on his past misdeeds.

Belfort is also the author of several books, including The Wolf of Wall Street and Catching the Wolf of Wall Street, which have been published in numerous countries and translated into multiple languages. He has also authored Way of the Wolf: Become a Master Closer with Straight Line Selling, released in 2017.

Personal Life

During his time at Stratton Oakmont, Belfort lived a lavish lifestyle, frequently hosting extravagant parties and indulging in recreational drugs, particularly quaaludes. His personal life was tumultuous, with multiple marriages and divorces. He was married to Denise Lombardo from 1985 to 1991, and then to British-born model Nadine Caridi, with whom he had two children, Chandler and Carter. Caridi divorced Belfort in 2005, citing domestic violence, likely fueled by his drug use. Belfort’s third marriage to Anne Koppe ended in divorce in 2020. He is currently dating Cristina Invernizzi.

One of Belfort’s more infamous purchases was the luxury yacht Nadine, which was originally built for fashion icon Coco Chanel. Belfort renamed the yacht after his second wife, but it sank off the coast of Sardinia in 1996 after he insisted on sailing in high winds against the captain’s advice.

Jordan Belfort Net Worth

Jordan Belfort net worth is -$100 million.