The First Bank of Madoff skirted newly enacted credit card interest regulations today, introducing a 79.9 percent interest credit card. It had been widely believed that Madoff's prison financial interests were limited solely to controlling the distribution of cigarettes, old Ponzi schemes, and Twitter bot accounts at the Butner Federal Correctional Complex near Raleigh, North Carolina. U.S. Government photo in the public domain)
First Bank of Madoff issuing 79.9% interest credit card
December 17, 2009
by shf
BUTNER, N.C. (FASTLAUGH.com) — The First Bank of Madoff skirted newly enacted credit card interest regulations today, introducing a 79.9 percent interest credit card. It had been widely believed that Bernie Madoff’s prison financial interests were limited solely to controlling the distribution of cigarettes, old Ponzi schemes, and Twitter bot accounts at the Butner Federal Correctional Complex near Raleigh, North Carolina.
Madoff, 71, despite serving a 150-year sentence following his guilty plea last March for ripping off at least $13 billion from thousands of investors, improbably engineered the formation of the First Bank of Madoff from the protective cover of his prison cell.
With today’s introduction of its 79.9 percent, instant credit BernieMax card, the First Bank of Madoff cynically timed the start of its 60-day plus introductory window for this subprime risk-based credit card to coincide with the final, breakneck week of the holiday season when U.S. consumers are at their most vulnerable, and desperate to obtain that last little bit of back-breaking credit so they can buy more Zhu Zhu Pets.
Madoff, CEO/CFO, in announcing the subprime credit card issuer’s First Bank of Madoff’s BernieMax card, noted that the introductory rate “…originally was to be set at 89.9 percent, but, to be completely honest with you, 89.9 percent felt as though it had just crossed the threshold of being slightly exploitative.”
In truth, it was learned later today that Madoff had indeed planned to offer the card at an introductory rate of 89.9 percent, but in light of First Premier Bank introducing its own 79.9 percent ValueMax card today, the First Bank of Madoff lowered its own rate to match First Premier Bank’s and remain competitive. Both banks are now racing to encumber as many U.S. citizens as possible prior to Feb. 21, 2010, when new regulations intended to curb these types of abusive industry practices go into effect, and continue to be ignored by credit card companies due to well-designed loopholes.