MMM founder, Sergei Mavrodi is dead!

Russian businessman, Sergei Panteleevich Mavrodi, whose viral pyramid scheme deprived millions, including Nigerians, of their savings has died, aged 62, TOPNAIJA.NG can confirm.

According to reports by Russian media, Mavrodi was rushed to the hospital March 25 and died of heart attack hours later.

Described as a Russian criminal and a former deputy of the State Duma, Mavrodi founded the МММ series of pyramid schemes.

Mavrodi’s MMM financial pyramid was a typical Ponzi scheme in which earlier investors receive their profits from subsequent investors. Mavrodi promised returns of 20 percent to 75 percent a month, as well as lotteries and bonuses for investors.

As soon as the number of new clients stopped growing, the pyramid collapsed, causing huge financial losses for at least 10 million people, in some cases leaving them destitute.

MMM stands for the first letters of the founders’ surnames – Sergei Mavrodi, Olga Melnikova and Vyacheslav Mavrodi.

According to various estimates, the number of participants of the MMM scheme has reached 10-15 million people.