Jordan Belfort, the real-life Wolf of Wall Street’s Net worth

How Much Debt Does Jordan Belfort Have?

Jordan Belfort is the real “Wolf of Wall Street,” played by none other than Leonardo DiCaprio in the film of the same name . While it would be a great honor for most people to be played by Leo in a film, it is a dubious honor. Because Jordan Belfort, who has already appeared as an author, stock trader, entrepreneur and motivational speaker, is heavily in debt. Currently, his assets and his mountain of debt are 100 million euros, even though the entrepreneur was once a rich man. However, the American had not earned his fortune in the millions with honest means. Rather, he was involved in money laundering and securities fraud, for which he was sentenced to prison in 1998.

The more than 1,500 clients the entrepreneur defrauded are now entitled to around $110 million of the $200 million that was embezzled. So far, Jordan Belfort has only been able to repay $11.6 million, leaving him €100 million in debt. The sum already repaid came mainly from the sale of various properties that Belfort had been able to buy during his Wall Street days. It is therefore rather uncertain whether he will ever be able to repay the remaining 100 million euros.

The exciting life of the real Wolf of Wall Street

Jordan Belfort was born the son of an accountant in the Big Apple. He grew up in a more middle-class background and studied at the American University. He dropped out of his dental training, which Jordan was originally supposed to do at the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, on day one. He had heard that there was hardly any money to be made as a dentist and that was exactly what Jordan Belfort was looking for during his college days. After initially eking out a living selling seafood and meat, he went on Wall Street in 1987. There he worked for the company LF Rothschild as a stockbroker. However, on Black Monday, LF Rothschild was forced to close unexpectedly, leaving Belfort suddenly unemployed and having to start all over again.

However, he bounced back quickly and began selling penny stocks in Long Island, which he did very well. Buoyed by his success, the former millionaire turned debtor founded a brokerage firm called Stratton Oakmont with his friend . During the 1980s and 1990s, Belfort’s firm grew into one of the largest brokerage companies in the entire United States. The company now employs more than 1,000 people. More than 35 corporations went public with the help of Stratton Oakmont and the broker was able to manage billions in investments. Jordan Belfort had already achieved multi-millionaire status at the age of just 26. However, the New Yorker couldn’t deal with it very well and from then on was known above all for his drug abuse and excessive lifestyle.

Punishment, debt, new fortune or is the bankruptcy vulture gnawing?

But his streak of success only lasted until 1998, when his company was shut down by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Jordan Belfort had failed as a cheater. Money laundering and securities fraud totaling $200 million landed him in prison for four years. The fact that he did not have to serve a longer sentence was partly due to the fact that Jordan Belfort cooperated with the FBI, leading to a mitigation of his original sentence. After only 22 months in prison, the ex-millionaire, who was now heavily in debt, was released. A meeting with Tommy Chong then led to Belfort deciding to write a book about his life so far. This book is also the basis of the Hollywood blockbuster The Wolf of Wall Street, directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Jordan Belfort. Belfort now lives in Manhattan Beach, California. He was at least partially able to gain a foothold again and is now relatively successful as a motivational speaker and entrepreneur. In the last few years, there have been allegations that Belfort, who is now earning quite well again, paid far too little of his current income back to the more than 1,500 victims. However, the entrepreneur clearly denied this accusation.