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Allen Stanford
Robert Allen Stanford (born March 24, 1950) is an American-Antiguan convicted financial fraudster, former financier, and sponsor of professional sports. He was convicted of fraud in 2012 for operating a massive Ponzi scheme, and is serving a 110-year federal prison sentence.
Stanford was the chairman of the now-defunct Stanford Financial Group of Companies. A fifth-generation Texan who once resided in Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, he holds dual citizenship in Antigua and Barbuda and the United States. He contributed millions of dollars to politicians in Antigua and the United States, amongst other countries.
In early 2009, Stanford became the subject of several fraud investigations, and on February 17, 2009, was charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission with fraud and multiple violations of U.S. securities laws for alleged "massive ongoing fraud" involving $7 billion in certificates of deposits. The Federal Bureau of Investigation raided Stanford's offices in Houston, Texas; Memphis, Tennessee; and Tupelo, Mississippi. On February 27, 2009, the SEC amended its complaint to describe the alleged fraud as a "massive Ponzi scheme". He voluntarily surrendered to authorities on June 18, 2009. On March 6, 2012, Stanford was convicted on all charges except one count of wire fraud. He is serving a 110-year sentence at United States Penitentiary, Coleman II in Coleman, Florida. In September 2014, Stanford filed an appeal; it was rejected in October 2015.
Stanford grew up in Mexia, Texas. His father, James Stanford (1927–2021), was mayor of Mexia and a member of the Board of Directors of Stanford Financial Group. His mother, Sammie (née Conn), is a nurse. After his parents divorced in 1959, Stanford and his brother went to live with their mother.
Stanford graduated from Eastern Hills High School in Fort Worth, Texas. In 1974, Stanford graduated from Baylor University in Waco, Texas, earning a BA degree in finance.
Stanford started in business in Waco, Texas, by opening a bodybuilding gym that failed. His first business success came from speculating in Houston real estate after the Texas oil bubble burst in the early 1980s; his father was his partner in this venture. The men made a fortune in the 1980s by purchasing depressed real estate and selling it years later as the market recovered. After his father retired in 1993, Stanford took control of the company, which by then had 500 employees.
Stanford moved to the Caribbean in the 1980s, first to Montserrat, then to Antigua. With Stanford Finance, he started Guardian International Bank on the island of Montserrat in 1985; he moved it to Antigua during a British crackdown on Montserrat's offshore-banking industry in the 1980s, renaming it Stanford International Bank, an affiliate of Stanford Financial.
Early in 2007, Stanford and Baldwin Spencer, prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda and formerly an ally, began verbally feuding in public.
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Allen Stanford
Robert Allen Stanford (born March 24, 1950) is an American-Antiguan convicted financial fraudster, former financier, and sponsor of professional sports. He was convicted of fraud in 2012 for operating a massive Ponzi scheme, and is serving a 110-year federal prison sentence.
Stanford was the chairman of the now-defunct Stanford Financial Group of Companies. A fifth-generation Texan who once resided in Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, he holds dual citizenship in Antigua and Barbuda and the United States. He contributed millions of dollars to politicians in Antigua and the United States, amongst other countries.
In early 2009, Stanford became the subject of several fraud investigations, and on February 17, 2009, was charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission with fraud and multiple violations of U.S. securities laws for alleged "massive ongoing fraud" involving $7 billion in certificates of deposits. The Federal Bureau of Investigation raided Stanford's offices in Houston, Texas; Memphis, Tennessee; and Tupelo, Mississippi. On February 27, 2009, the SEC amended its complaint to describe the alleged fraud as a "massive Ponzi scheme". He voluntarily surrendered to authorities on June 18, 2009. On March 6, 2012, Stanford was convicted on all charges except one count of wire fraud. He is serving a 110-year sentence at United States Penitentiary, Coleman II in Coleman, Florida. In September 2014, Stanford filed an appeal; it was rejected in October 2015.
Stanford grew up in Mexia, Texas. His father, James Stanford (1927–2021), was mayor of Mexia and a member of the Board of Directors of Stanford Financial Group. His mother, Sammie (née Conn), is a nurse. After his parents divorced in 1959, Stanford and his brother went to live with their mother.
Stanford graduated from Eastern Hills High School in Fort Worth, Texas. In 1974, Stanford graduated from Baylor University in Waco, Texas, earning a BA degree in finance.
Stanford started in business in Waco, Texas, by opening a bodybuilding gym that failed. His first business success came from speculating in Houston real estate after the Texas oil bubble burst in the early 1980s; his father was his partner in this venture. The men made a fortune in the 1980s by purchasing depressed real estate and selling it years later as the market recovered. After his father retired in 1993, Stanford took control of the company, which by then had 500 employees.
Stanford moved to the Caribbean in the 1980s, first to Montserrat, then to Antigua. With Stanford Finance, he started Guardian International Bank on the island of Montserrat in 1985; he moved it to Antigua during a British crackdown on Montserrat's offshore-banking industry in the 1980s, renaming it Stanford International Bank, an affiliate of Stanford Financial.
Early in 2007, Stanford and Baldwin Spencer, prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda and formerly an ally, began verbally feuding in public.