If a pyramid runs forever, is it still a pyramid?

[fiulpro]

If the pyramid they you talk about is in the limelight and it is indeed a ponzi scheme then it is hard to think that the government won't do anything or the people who has been duped won't just sue them after facing problems due to that schemes .

It is not actually the problem of the institutions , people need to learn after seeing them do all this , they need to know that there is nothing in this world for free and at the same time if there is something that is too good to be true then you should rather stay away from that thing.

Avoid unauthorized institutions, don't get involved with the ones who do not have any reviews online and haven't been tested .

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[South Park]

I definitely like this point of view. Exhaustion of available fools! LOL  I don't understand why MLM schemes are still proliferating nowadays. Maybe, hoping that someday they will get rich from their downlines? But it is like taking advantage of those gullible people who are now stuck to the idea that they will get rich also from their future referrals. 

This keeps happening because most people do not have a financial education, they do not understand how the economy works, they do not understand money, loans compounding interest or how to distinguish a good investment opportunity from one that is a scam, just look at bitconnect which was a ponzi scheme, many trusted members warned that it was a ponzi but people wanted to believe this time was different and they were laughing at the accusations only to be proven wrong in January of 2018.

[Harlot]

Let's think 3Dimensionally beyond the simple MLM, ponzi.

1. The pyramid is a hierarchical structure right? Now, imagine it being surrounded by legimate businesses. I mean most "complicated" and smart ponzis are like that and can run for decades. Think Bernie Madoff.

You are only talking about MLM here or networking where they have real products but the main way to earn here is through commissions by their referrals. Unlike Ponzi schemes/HYIPs famous in the internet which they claim they drill oil, harvest solar power all of which are false businesses to begin with. MLMs stand to survive because one they are legal and two they sell products at an unreasonable rate and the way their recruiters work which are on the top of the pyramid sells vigorously that they don't care what the products worth right now they just want to earn like them as well.

[Mpamaegbu]

1. The pyramid is a hierarchical structure right? Now, imagine it being surrounded by legimate businesses. I mean most "complicated" and smart ponzis are like that and can run for decades. Think Bernie Madoff.

First off, no pyramid runs forever. They all have an expiring date for the dirty business to come to an end. You saw how Madoff ended and the appropriate sentencing he got for that scheme, right? The scheme is like a vampire. There must always be regular new entrants ("blood") supply to sustain the gluttonous old members to keep it going. Once supply is cut off, the scheme dies off. It's the normal circle for ponzi schemes. There is always a day of reckoning.

[eternalgloom]

I have a grandmother (who owns a small factory) and uses/used this kind of scheme to improve her workers wages and the workers were/are actually doing well. I know one of her male worker who lived quite comfortably compared to his neighbors.

I learned the so called pyramid/ponzi scheme is ancient to our culture and that it was used to sustain communities in difficult times. It still works for them to thesedays.

So, would you encourage me to go tell my grandmother to abandon this scheme because government and Internet people think it is evil or illegal? Well, thank goodness the local authorities do not interfere too much in the people's lives and culture there. And it is a thriving community that depends less on government,

I think such scheme could be ran properly and sustainably if done right

Which country are you from? That's the first time I've ever seen someone mention that Ponzi schemes are inherent to their culture.
Are you sure you're actually talking about ponzi schemes?

I.e. paying out old investors with money brought in by new investors, without doing anything else with that money?

[Naida_BR]

I have been wracking my head trying to figure this out. I've been watching some schemes on cryptocurrencies and even though their complexity is very high, many all boil down to the same basic principle: a ponzi.

What my question is seeking to address is whether these ponzi schemes are indeed ponzi if a surrounding business takes advantage of it.

Ok, I did not make myself clear.

Let's think 3Dimensionally beyond the simple MLM, ponzi.

1. The pyramid is a hierarchical structure right? Now, imagine it being surrounded by legimate businesses. I mean most "complicated" and smart ponzis are like that and can run for decades. Think Bernie Madoff.

2. From the Ponzi, legitimate and real businesses are ran. In fact, an entire eco-system can be built around the simple ponzi. From investing in other legitimate investments to small brick and mortar SMEs, ponzi money can "expand" to so many horizons.

What are examples?

- apparel
- consulting services
- video content
- tradeshow and "TEDtalk" like events with pricey tickets
- VPN hosting services, etc, etc.

These allied businesses, are not in and of themselves "ponzi" but may have been capitalized with ponzi money. Now, if any of these endeavors "takes off" and perpetuates the ponzi or prolongs it, doesn't that make the ponzi not a ponzi?

Those two doesn't correlate to each other.
If it is a pyramid then that seems that it will stop in the future.
If it never stops then it is not a pyramid.
In my opinion, if there is even the smallest indication that it is a pyramid, thus a ponzi scheme, then so it is.