An Influencer's False Promise to Make His Followers Rich

About this episode

The episode discusses Tai Lopez's controversial pitch to his followers about getting rich through distressed retail brands and the subsequent SEC accusations against him.

Get your tickets to our L.A. live show here! In 2019, influencer Tai Lopez made a pitch to his social media followers: by buying up distressed retail brands like Radio Shack and Pier 1 out of bankruptcy, they could all get rich. But as WSJ’s Suzanne Kapner reports, the Securities and Exchange Commission accused Lopez of running a “Ponzi-like scheme” through his company, Retail Ecommerce Ventures. Ryan Knutson hosts. Further Listening/Viewing: - Influencer Arielle Charnas’s Fashion Fail - How a Miami Couple Used Empty Mansions to Pocket Millions Sign up for WSJ’s free What’s News newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Host: Ryan Knutson

Topics covered

• influencer culture
• financial schemes
• bankruptcy
• retail brands
• SEC investigations

Keywords

• Tai Lopez
• Ponzi scheme
• influencer
• bankruptcy
• Securities and Exchange Commission

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Securities and Exchange Commission, Retail Ecommerce Ventures, The Wall Street Journal, Spotify Studios

Products: Radio Shack, Pier 1

Books & works: What’s News

Places: L.A.

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