The character portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio in his 2013 classic, “The Wolf of Wall Street,” was Jordan Belfort – a man known for his fraudulent acts that fetched him millions of dollars at his peak. Due to the nature of his income source, many websites and statistical sources label his net worth with a negative sign, signifying his dubiousness in wealth acquisition.
However, Jordan Belfort’s net worth and lifestyle are interesting topics! So, what is Jordan Belfort’s net worth? How exactly did he make such a huge sum, and what did the government do about it? What is his occupation today? We’ll answer these questions and more as the article proceeds. But first, let’s briefly figure out Belfort’s background before becoming an infamous millionaire.
Who is Jordan Belfort?
Jordan Ross Belfort (@wolfofwallst) is an American former stockbroker, a convicted felon, a motivational speaker, and an author. He was born in New York in 1962 and was raised by a Jewish family. Jordan Belfort had an eye for wealth from a young age when he started a rice trading business while he was in high school.
As evidence of his obsession for quick wealth, he got into a dental school at the University of Maryland but left after his first class! Why? Sources say it was because a faculty member told him that being a dentist wasn’t the best way to get rich.
After leaving the school, Belfort engaged in different jobs to make money until he eventually found a job at L.F. Rothschild as a stockbroker. This move spurred his admiration for stockbroking cash, and he consequently moved around, gaining knowledge about the profession.
When he was ‘ready,’ he established his own stockbroking firm “Stratton Oakmont” in 1989. This innovation was indeed the beginning of what seemed to be the end for the American millionaire.
What is Jordan Belfort’s Career, Net Worth, and Current Occupation?
At Stratton Oakmont, Belfort and his employees used the pump-and-dump scheme to defraud a total of 1,513 victims. At his peak, he managed over $1 billion but continued to suffer opposition from the National Association of Securities Dealers, which cut down his transactions and drained his profits.
His fraudulent acts amassed over $200 million at optimum. But since he was later reprimanded and made to restitute huge percentages of his cash, Jordan Belfort’s net worth is currently around a negative $100 million.
Jordan Belfort’s net worth would be multiple times greater if he was not made to refund his victims, spend time in prison, and lose his firm, land, and several properties. Nonetheless, Belfort was able to bypass several restitution orders, retaining his millionaire status for him.
For instance, his 2003 sentence was supposed to see him spend 4 years behind bars and repay the sum of $110 million to his victims. However, Belfort’s “luck” and state service (wearing a wire to capture other offenders) saw him spend just 22 months in prison. Also, Belfort has paid a total of roughly $14 million, negating the dictates of his sentence. He still owes about $100 million and is expected to repay the sum for as long as it takes.
In prison, Jordan Belfort discovered his innate writing skills and authored several articles (memoirs), all of which were either titled or centered around “The Wolf of Wall Street”. Since then, despite not using the nickname throughout his days as the manager of Stratton Oakmont, Belfort is now recognized as the Wolf of Wall Street.
In fact, many believe that his writings were inspirations for Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese to create their movie masterpiece. Since Belfort’s release, however, Jordan Belfort’s net worth has had little gain through his new career path as a motivational speaker.
Belfort began lectures and speeches on business ethics and how to learn from mistakes in business. However, as it would turn out, the short prison sentence did not rehabilitate Jordan Belfort’s mindset about wealth accumulation. He demands from his listeners between $30,000 and $75,000 to book a speaking engagement. Seminars, on the other hand, range from $80,000 and above.
So, it is untrue to think that Belfort has been wrecked by the turnout of events following his fraud and reprimanding. Instead, the American felon makes about $18 million annually after making all legal deductions. However, his new career path is facing serious issues as many of his customers give negative reviews. At the same time, some go all the way to court over his alleged withholding of the percentage that was legally supposed to go into the pockets of his victims.
Will Jordan Belfort’s Net Worth Increase in 2024?
Over the last five years, Belfort has maintained his current net worth, but that is due to personal consumption of income and legal deductions. It is also important to note that since his reprimand for fraudulent activities, his income has always fluctuated and is difficult to determine.
Conclusion
However, based on the current trend, we can predict Jordan Belfort’s net worth to remain at approximately -$100 million. This is due to his unpaid debt to the victims of his scandals, his unstable income, and his legal deductions.
