Jordan Belfort Biography Net Worth, Source of Income, Earnings, Professional & Personal Life

Jordan Ross Belfort is a renowned American author as well as a highly sought motivational speaker. But he is infamous around the globe for his former profession, stockbroking, along with the sentence that he served for committing felonies while being in this profession. He pleaded in 1999 about the felonies that he committed, which included stock-market manipulation and running a boiler room. After serving his sentence, he published two books. One of his books became an adaptation for a global hit movie.

His past actions as a stockbroker included defrauding his customers by persuading them to put their money into penny stocks. This left his clients at the loss of their money. Hence, Jordan was sentenced to pay the amount of 110 million as compensation for losses to the investors of his stockbroking firm. Once reported as having a net worth of 93 million dollars in the year 2014. In the year 2021, Jordan Belfort stands with his net worth being (-) 100 million.

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Who is Jordan Belfort?

In 1962, Jordan Belfort was born in a Jewish family in New York City. Both his parents were accountants. Most of his childhood was spent in Bayside, Queens. He made nearly $20,000 just by selling Italian ice on a local beach with his friend Elliot.

He then graduated from the American University with a degree in Biology. But spent the money that he earned before college at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry, when he enrolled there. But left after the very first day after having a chat with the dean of the university. The dean told him that the golden age of dentistry was over and that he had come to the wrong place if he was looking to make a lot of money.

Jordan Belfort Professional Life

Jordan started his earning career by becoming a door-to-door seafood and meat salesman on Long Island. He has often told people that it was a successful business. He used to have sales of nearly 5,000 pounds (2,300 kgs) every week, including both beef and fish. The eventual failure of that business caused him to file bankruptcy at the age of 25. He then became a trainee stockbroker at L.F. Rothschild with the help of a family friend. But was later relieved from the firm after it experienced the financial crisis of the Black Monday of 1987.

After that, Jordan established Stratton Oakmont as a part of Stratton Securities’ franchise. Later, he bought the founder of the firm.  After the fall of Stratton Oakmont, Jordan served his sentence at Taft Correctional institute. When his sentence ended, he became a writer and published two books, one of them became an adaptation for a globally hit movie. He is now a motivational speaker and provides teachings about straight-line sales psychology.

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Jordan Belfort Personal Life

At the period when he was running the Stratton Oakmont business, Jordan and his first wife, Denise Lombardo, got divorced in 2005. After which, he married a British-born, Brooklyn-raised model Nadine Caridi that he once met at a party. They gave birth to two children. They eventually separated after Nadine sued Jordan for domestic violence.

Felonies of Jordan Belfort

The stockbroking venture of the Jordan, Stratton Oakmont, functioned as the main boiler room for selling penny stocks. He did this to defraud the investors of their money with the help of the “pump and dump” method for trading stocks. At Stratton Oakmont, Jordan consisted of a luxurious life where every day was lavish parties and recreational drugs. The unethical working of this venture made it become a target for law enforcement officials for nearly its whole life span.

In 1996, NASD (National Association of Securities Dealers) made Stratton Oakmont get out of business by expelling it. Jordan was trialed and sentenced to four years at the Taft Correctional Institute but released after serving 22 months. The pump and dump scams left his clients at the loss of nearly $220 million, and he was found guilty for 50% of this whole loss. Hence, he got sentenced to pay $110 million back to those clients.

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FAQ:

Q1: Which book of Jordan became an adaptation for a movie?

He wrote The Wolf of Wall Street and Catching the Wolf of Wall Street as his two memoirs. They both got published in nearly 40 countries and got translated into about 18 languages. His autobiography Wolf of Wall Street got adapted for a movie. 

Q2: What does Jordan Belfort do now?

After being released from prison, Belfort had to pay 50% of the losses his clients had suffered as a part of his restitution agreement. He keeps this as his primary business and teaches people about what he refers to as the “Straight Line System,” which includes the importance of business ethics and the mistakes he made as a stockbroker.

Q3: What inspired Jordan Belfort to start writing?

Often in his interviews, Jordan mentions his friend Tommy Chong with whom he shared his cell. He tells how Tommy told and inspired him to write about his experience of life as a stockbroker. He said to him that it would let others learn from his mistakes and get motivated by him.

Q4: How much does Jordan owe his previous investors?

According to the statement in his restitution agreement, he has to pay nearly 110.4 million dollars to his previous investors that he defrauded.

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