Jordan Belfort

Belfort married his first wife, Denise Lombardo, in 1985, and the pair divorced during his tenure at Stratton Oakmont. He later met British-born model Nadine Caridi at a party, and the two married in 1991. They had two children together, daughter Chandler and son Carter. Belfort and Caridi divorced in 2005 amid his struggles with substance abuse and allegations of domestic violence. Caridi served as the real-life inspiration for the fictionalized character Naomi Lapaglia in the 2013 film adaptation of his memoir.

Belfort was later in a relationship with Anne Koppe, whom he has referred to as his ex-wife, from around 2008 until 2020. In February 2021, he married Argentine model and real estate broker Cristina Invernizzi in a ceremony held in Las Vegas.

During the 1990s, Belfort purchased a luxury motor yacht originally built in 1961 for French fashion designer Coco Chanel and renamed it Nadine. In June 1996, the vessel sank off the east coast of Sardinia after Belfort insisted on navigating through heavy storms against the advice of his captain. All passengers and crew members aboard were rescued by the Italian Navy special forces unit COMSUBIN.

Jordan Ross Belfort was born on July 9, 1962, in the Bronx, New York City, to Leah and Max Belfort, who both worked as accountants. Raised in a Jewish household in Bayside, Queens, he showed an aptitude for sales at an early age. In the summer between high school and college, he and his childhood friend Elliot Loewenstern earned $20,000 selling Italian ice to beachgoers from Styrofoam coolers at Jones Beach.

Belfort enrolled at American University, graduating with a bachelor of science degree in biology. He initially intended to use his savings to attend dental school and enrolled at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry. However, he withdrew on his very first day after the dean delivered an orientation address warning students that dentistry was no longer a pathway to rapid wealth.

Following college, Belfort launched a door-to-door meat and seafood delivery business operating across Long Island. Although the company expanded to employ multiple workers and move thousands of pounds of product weekly, it eventually collapsed under rapid expansion, leading Belfort to file for personal bankruptcy at age 25. He subsequently entered the finance industry as a trainee stockbroker at L.F. Rothschild, where he learned the basics of trading before being laid off following the Black Monday market crash of October 1987.

In the late 1980s, Belfort established the brokerage firm Stratton Oakmont alongside business partner Danny Porush. Operating primarily out of Long Island, the firm functioned as a high-pressure boiler room that specialized in aggressively pitching low-priced penny stocks to retail investors. The company manipulated stock valuations through classic pump-and-dump schemes, artificially inflating stock prices before liquidating the firm's private holdings for immense profits.

Stratton Oakmont grew rapidly, eventually employing more than 1,000 brokers and underwriting major corporate offerings, including the initial public offering for footwear company Steve Madden. Belfort cultivated an unruly corporate culture fueled by extreme excess, heavy spending, and recreational drug use, developing a severe addiction to methaqualone (Quaaludes).

The firm faced sustained regulatory scrutiny from the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In 1994, Belfort agreed to a settlement with the SEC that included a lifetime ban from working in the securities industry. In December 1996, the NASD formally expelled Stratton Oakmont from the securities industry, forcing its liquidation.

Federal authorities indicted Belfort in 1999 on charges of securities fraud and money laundering. Following his arrest, he entered into a plea agreement with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, agreeing to cooperate as an informant. As part of the arrangement, Belfort wore a covert listening wire to record conversations with business associates and testified against dozens of former partners and subordinates in exchange for leniency.

In July 2003, Belfort received a four-year prison sentence and was ordered to pay $110.4 million in restitution to compensate the estimated 1,513 investors defrauded by Stratton Oakmont. He served 22 months at the federal Taft Correctional Institution in California. While incarcerated, he shared a cell with comedian and actor Tommy Chong, who encouraged him to write a book detailing his experiences in the financial sector.

Following his release, Belfort's financial arrangements were subject to ongoing oversight by federal prosecutors. Under a renegotiated agreement reached with the federal government, he was required to pay a minimum of $10,000 per month toward his remaining restitution balance, with additional income from speaking tours and media royalties contributed toward the fund.

Belfort began drafting his memoirs shortly after leaving prison, securing a major advance from Random House. His first book, The Wolf of Wall Street, was published in 2007 and became an international bestseller. He followed it in 2009 with a sequel memoir, Catching the Wolf of Wall Street, which covered his arrest, cooperation with law enforcement, and life following his prison term.

Director Martin Scorsese adapted Belfort's first memoir into the 2013 feature film The Wolf of Wall Street, starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Belfort, Jonah Hill as his business partner, and Margot Robbie as his wife. The film was nominated for five Academy Awards, with DiCaprio winning a Golden Globe for his portrayal. Belfort made a brief cameo in the movie's closing scene, appearing as an event host introducing DiCaprio's character to an audience in Auckland.

Belfort continued his writing career with sales and business titles, publishing Way of the Wolf: Master the Art of Persuasion, Influence, and Success in 2017 and The Wolf of Investing in 2023.

Following his release from federal custody, Belfort pivoted to public speaking and corporate consulting, founding the company Global Motivation Inc. He developed a proprietary sales curriculum known as the Straight Line System, presenting seminars worldwide on persuasion, sales psychology, and entrepreneurship.

His speaking engagements emphasize lessons drawn from his past misconduct, framing his lectures around business ethics, regulatory compliance, and personal redemption. In addition to corporate training workshops, he has appeared on television programs and invested in various business ventures, including cryptocurrency startups.