Trust is at the root of many Wall Street deals. In finance, having the right credentials - like degrees from top schools, experience at an A-list hedge fund, and spending summers in the right Long Island towns - has always been a proven way to pass through many of the industry's key filters. It's often enough to get into circles where investing or donating is just a friendly social gesture - an approach that has worked for philanthropists, hedge fund newcomers, and even scammers.
One of Artamonov's buddies who got scammed doubted it all the way up until the end, wondering “There’s no way Vlad would be running a Ponzi scheme, right?” when he was starting to really worry. “Why would he risk his reputation? It’s a small amount of money, it’s not rational — why would he put his career on the line?” they reasoned. “I think you give a friend the benefit of the doubt.