In the first comprehensive account of this financial mastermind's epic Ponzi scheme, Catastrophe exposes the real story behind Madoff's upstanding façade—his confession, his family's involvement, and his unlikely rise and incredible crash. With first-hand victim accounts detailing the personal and business effects of the disastrous crime, the book peels back Madoff's persona layer by layer, revealing how he developed his elaborate deceit, and how and why, ironically, he targeted and scammed the world of Jewish philanthropy. Through interviews with Madoff's friends and colleagues, the authors draw a picture of Madoff from his ability to use his easygoing charm and country-club sociability to gain entry into influential circles to his Machiavellian financial acumen capable of building and sustaining a towering fraud. Catastrophe defines and explains the whole debacle—how he seduced and persuaded sophisticated investors, how he eluded SEC watchdogs for years, and how his far-reaching crime has affected the world. Complete with the famous whistle-blower letter to the SEC, a list of victims, SEC filings and more, Catastrophe offers a complete look at the white-collar crime of the century that will leave the reader both astounded and in disbelief. The first complete biography of Bernard Madoff, Catastrophe presents never-before-revealed details about the life and work of this financial mastermind.