FEBRUARY >

Jan. 1

Jos. Schlitz Brewing Co. — Product Failure (1976)

Robert Uihlein ordered Jos. Schlitz Brewing Co. to replace a key brewing stabilizer with a cheaper substitute called Chill-Garde. The shortcut reduced costs but destroyed quality. It triggered a massive recall over haze and spoilage, and it helped turn a top-selling beer into a brand consumers abandoned.

Jan. 2

Standard Oil — Regulatory Action (1882)

John D. Rockefeller and his partners created the Standard Oil Trust, consolidating dozens of companies into a single entity that dominated the oil industry by crushing competitors and controlling prices. The oil giant eventually triggered an antitrust crackdown that ultimately broke it apart.

Saks Global — CEO Resignation (2026)

Saks Global CEO Marc Metrick stepped down as the luxury retailer faced mounting debt and reports it was preparing for bankruptcy. The parent company of Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus named Executive Chairman Richard Baker as his successor, just days after reports it had missed a debt payment tied to its merger. Read More: Sacking Saks (Business Blunders)

Jan. 3

Home Depot — CEO Resignation (2007)

Bob Nardelli resigned as CEO of Home Depot after losing market share, alienating executives, and drawing backlash over his pay. He focused on cost-cutting over customer servic while collecting a massive compensation package despite weak results.

Theranos — Fraud Conviction (2022)

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes was convicted on multiple counts of fraud for misleading investors about the company’s blood-testing technology. Her Silicon Valley fairy tale built on hype and secrecy collapsed when the science didn’t match the story. She was later sentenced to more than 11 years in prison. Read More: ElizabethHolmes – Theranos (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Jan. 4

Service Merchandise — Bankruptcy (2002)

Service Merchandise announced it was going out of business after a second bankruptcy filing. A catalog showroom model built for another era couldn’t survive the shift to big-box stores and online retail.

BlackBerry — Product Shutdown (2022)

BlackBerry shut down its legacy services, rendering its once-ubiquitous smartphones largely unusable. A pioneer of the mobile era failed to keep up with the touchscreen revolution and faded into obsolescence.

Jan. 5

Boeing — Operational Failure (2024)

A door plug blew out mid-flight on an Alaska Airlines jet, prompting regulators to ground Boeing’s 737 MAX 9 fleet. The incident reignited scrutiny of Boeing’s safety and quality controls. Read More: Con Air (Business Blunders)

Jan. 6

Bank of New England — Collapse (1991)

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Regulators seized Bank of New England, one of the largest bank failures of its time, after mounting loan losses crippled the institution. Aggressive lending and weak oversight left the bank exposed when the economy turned.

Lyondell Chemical — Bankruptcy (2009)

Lyondell Chemical Co. and several affiliates filed bankruptcy under a mountain of debt from a leveraged buyout. A heavily leveraged deal left the company exposed and when the downturn hit, the balance sheet buckled.

Jan. 7

Satyam Computer Services — Accounting Scandal (2009)

B. Ramalinga Raju resigned from Satyam Computer Services and confessed to inflating cash balances and falsifying accounts by more than $1.5 billion, or roughly 7,000 crore rupees. The massive fraud earned the company the nickname “India’s Enron.”

Boeing — Criminal Charges (2021)

Boeing was charged with conspiracy to defraud regulators over two deadly 737 MAX crashed and entered a deferred prosecution agreement with more than $2.5 billion in penalties and compensation. The charge was dismissed in November 2025 under the Trump administration. Read More: Felons Fly Free (Business Blunders)

Ted Farnsworth — Guilty Plea (2025)

Ted Farnsworth, former CEO of MoviePass parent Helios and Matheson Analytics, pleaded guilty to securities fraud for misleading investors about the company’s finances and business prospects. MoviePass grew wildly with an irresistible subscription service for moviegoers. For less than $10 a month, they got a ticket to see a movie a day. Too good to be true? Yes, it was. Read More: Ted Farnsworth – Movie Pass (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

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Jan. 8

Pan Am — Bankruptcy (1991)

Pan American World Airways filed bankruptcy as losses mounted and its survival prospects dimmed. The once-iconic airline never recovered, shutting down later that year.

Bear Stearns — CEO Resignation (2008)

James Cayne resigned as CEO of Bear Stearns after massive losses on mortgage-backed securities pushed the firm into crisis. A heavy bet on subprime lending unraveled, foreshadowing the bank’s collapse just months later.

Jan. 9

Kidder, Peabody & Co. — Fraud Charges (1996)

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed charges against Joseph Jett for generating $340 million in phony profits at Kidder, Peabody & Co. through fraudulent trading. He was later barred from the securities industry, though no criminal charges were filed.

U.S. Economy — Job Loss (2009)

The U.S. Department of Labor reported that the nation lost about 1.9 million jobs in the last four months of 2008, the worst annual decline in decades. Companies slashed payrolls as the financial crisis rippled through the economy.

Jan. 10

AOL / Time Warner — Acquisition Blunder (2000)

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America Online and Time Warner announced a $182 billion deal, forming AOL Time Warner in the largest merger in corporate history at the time. The blockbuster bet on internet hype over old media synergies became one of the worst deals in M&A history.

Target — Data Breach (2014)

Target revealed its holiday data breach was far worse than first reported, exposing the personal information of up to 70 million customers. The company said names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses were taken, dramatically expanding the scope of one of the largest retail hacks in U.S. history.

Jan. 11

Volkswagen — Guilty Plea (2017)

Volkswagen agreed to plead guilty and pay $4.3 billion in criminal and civil penalties in the U.S. diesel-emissions fraud case. The company rigged millions of cars to cheat emissions tests—turning “clean diesel” into one of the biggest corporate frauds in automotive history. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

eBay — Criminal Settlement (2024)

eBay Inc. agreed to pay a $3 million criminal penalty in connection with a corporate cyberstalking campaign carried out by its employees against critics. Executives tried to silence a newsletter with harassment and intimidation, turning a PR problem into a criminal case. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Jan. 12

Alcoa — Financial Loss (2009)

Alcoa reported a then-staggering $1.2 billion quarterly loss, an early warning of how badly industrial giants had misjudged demand during the financial crisis. Orders collapsed, prices plunged, and the downturn hit faster than companies expected.

STG Logistics — Bankruptcy (2026)

STG Logistics filed bankruptcy after debt and operational issues drained its liquidity. A leveraged balance sheet and execution problems left the freight hauler short of cash.

Jan. 13

Takata — Guilty Plea (2017)

Takata agreed to plead guilty to wire fraud and pay $1 billion in criminal penalties for concealing defects in its airbag inflators. Faulty airbags tied to dozens of deaths became one of the largest safety recalls in automotive history. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Jan. 14

Enron — Guilty Plea (2004)

Enron’s former chief financial officer Andrew Fastow, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and securities fraud. He agreed to cooperate with prosecutors, forfeit more than $23 million, and serve a 10-year sentence for his role in the scheme. Read More: Enron Was A Parody Of Itself (Business Blunders)

Saks Global — Bankruptcy (2026)

Saks Global filed bankruptcy as heavy debt and weak performance strained the business. A highly leveraged bet on iconic luxury retailers unraveled as department stores lost their appeal. Read More: Sacking Saks (Business Blunders)

Jan. 15

Federated Department Stores — Bankruptcy (1990)

Federated Department Stores filed bankruptcy, one of the largest retail failures in U.S. history at the time. Canadian real estate developer Robert Campeau buried the retailer with debt with his leveraged buyouts. The debt-fueled takeover spree left the retailer unable to pay its bills when the economy turned.

Google — Product Failure (2015)

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Google halted consumer sales of Google Glass after privacy concerns, high costs, and weak demand sank the high-profile gadget. A hyped wearable flopped as privacy fears and limited use turned early adopters into skeptics. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Joann Inc. — Bankruptcy (2025)

Joann Inc. filed bankruptcy for the second time in a year. A brief trip through bankruptcy wasn’t enough for the fabric and crafts retailer. Weak sales and heavy debt dragged the retailer back under.

Jan. 16

Bank of America — Bailout (2009)

The Treasury announced it would invest an additional $20 billion in Bank of America as losses tied to the Merrill Lynch acquisition mounted during the financial crisis. A rushed deal saddled the bank with toxic assets, forcing taxpayers to step in and stabilize the damage.

Circuit City — Shutdown (2009)

Circuit City announced it would liquidate and close all 567 U.S. stores. The big-box pioneer failed to keep pace with rivals and changing consumer habits, turning a once-dominant chain into a retail casualty.

Jan. 17

Party City — Bankruptcy (2023)

Party City filed its first bankruptcy and began closing hundreds for corporately owned stores. The retailer was already buried in debt as the Covid-19 pandemic ended most festivities.

Jan. 18

Eastern Air Lines — Shutdown (1991)

Eastern Air Lines shut down after 64 years of service following a prolonged bankruptcy. Labor strife, heavy debt, and mismanagement grounded one of America’s largest airlines for good.

Jack in the Box — Fast Food Disaster (1993)

An E. Coli outbreak was traced to undercooked hamburgers at Jack In The Box. Hundreds were sickened. Four died. Sweeping fast-food industry changes followed.

Pets.com — Shutdown (2001)

Pets.com completed its liquidation after burning through cash just months after its initial public stock offering. The company spent heavily on marketing and sold pet supplies at a loss, becoming a symbol of dot-com excess when the business model never added up.

HSBC — Settlement (2020)

HSBC Holdings agreed to pay more than $100 million to resolve fraud charges over a scheme to manipulate foreign exchange trades for its own benefit. The bank used inside knowledge of client trades to tilt the market in its favor. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Jan. 19

Eastman Kodak — Bankruptcy (2012)

Eastman Kodak filed bankruptcy after failing to pivot from film to digital photography. The company had invented the digital camera, but couldn’t give up on its Kodachrome, falling behind as technology moved on. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Megaupload — Shutdown (2012)

U.S. authorities shut down Megaupload after its leaders, including Kim Dotcom, were indicted on charges of widespread copyright infringement. The wildly popular site built a business on pirated content until the government pulled the plug.

Jan. 20

Marc Rich — Legal Action (2001)

President Bill Clinton pardoned former Glencore CEO Marc Rich, who violated U.S. trade sanctions, evaded taxes and lived in Switzerland as a fugitive for 18 years. Read More: Marc Rich – Glencore (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Jan. 21

General Motors — Market Loss (2009)

General Motors officially lost its the title as the world’s largest automaker to Toyota, after years of market share decline and mismanagement. GM announced worldwide sales of 8.36 million cars and trucks in 2008 compared with Toyota’s 8.97 million vehicle sales that same year.

Jan. 22

Kmart — Bankruptcy (2002)

Kmart filed bankruptcy as it suffered high debt, poor holiday sales and competitive pressures from Target and Walmart. It then the largest retail bankruptcy in U.S. history.

Research In Motion — CEO Resignation (2012)

Mike Lazaridis stepped down as co-CEO of Research In Motion, the maker of BlackBerry, as its smartphone dominance eroded. A pioneer of the mobile era failed to keep up with the touchscreen revolution and lost its lead.

Jan. 23

Serta Simmons Bedding — Bankruptcy (2023)

Serta Simmons Bedding filed bankruptcy, saddled with billons in debt from a 2016 private-equity buyout.

Jan. 24

Société Générale — Fraud Discovery (2008)

French banking giant Société Générale accused a junior employee, Jerome Kerviel, of the biggest rogue trader scandal in history hit, a fraud costing $7 billion.

Jan. 25

J. Clifford Baxter — Death (2002)

Enron executive J. Clifford Baxter took his own life after agreeing to testify before Congress.

JCPenney — Product Failure (2012)

JC Penney unveiled a sweeping “transformation” under CEO Ron Johnson, the former Apple retail chief. He scrapped coupons and sales for everyday low pricing and launched a boutique-style store overhaul. The moves alienating core customers, crushing sales, and triggering one of retail’s most infamous retail blunders ever. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Albert Dunlap — Executive Death (2019)

Albert J. Dunlap, the hard-charging CEO known as “Chainsaw Al,” died at 81. He built a reputation on mass layoffs and cost-cutting, then left behind a legacy tarnished by accounting scandal and a massive shareholder settlement after the collapse of Sunbeam.

Jan. 26

Bed Bath & Beyond — Financial Distress (2023)

Bed Bath & Beyond announced that banks had cut its credit line following too many over-advances, a critical blow that accelerated the retail chain’s collapse.

Jan. 27

GameStop — Market Spike (2021)

GameStop hit its highest closing price, soaring about 1,940% from the beginning of that month. Today, the meme stock is still down to a fraction of its peak.

Jan. 28

Global Crossing — Bankruptcy (2002)

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Global Crossing filed what was then the fourth-largest bankruptcy in U.S. history and the largest-ever in the telecommunications sector. Read More: A Dead Billionaire Defaults (Business Blunders)

Jan. 29

American International Group — Settlement (2008)

Greg Abbott, then Texas Attorney General, announced a settlement with American International Group over bid-rigging allegations. The insurer steered business through sham bids to create the illusion of competition—undermining a market built on trust.

BP — Criminal Settlement (2013)

BP Exploration and Production Inc. pleaded guilty and was sentenced to pay $4 billion in criminal fines and penalties for its 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Pacific Gas & Electric — Bankruptcy (2019)

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. filed bankruptcy after amassing liabilities from a series of catastrophic wildfires in 2017 and 2018. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Jan. 30

American Freedom Mortgage — Bankruptcy (2007)

Subprime mortgage lender American Freedom Mortgage filed bankruptcy, an early warning sign in the subprime mortgage crisis that led to the nations’ economic collapse in 2008.

Metropolitan Capital Bank & Trust — Collapse (2026)

Metropolitan Capital Bank & Trust became the first U.S. bank failure of the year when Illinois regulators closed it over unsafe and unsound conditions and an impaired capital position. The Chicago bank had about $261.1 million in assets.

Jan. 31

Trans World Airlines — Bankruptcy (1992)

Trans World Airlines filed bankruptcy after years of financial mismanagement, debt problems, and controversial asset sales under corporate raider Carl Icahn.

Russell Wasendorf Sr. — Fraud Sentencing (2013)

Russell Wasendorf Sr., founder of Peregrine Financial Group, was sentenced to 50 years in prison after pleading guilty to embezzling more than $215 million from clients over two decades. A 20-year fraud built on fake bank records collapsed—costing clients hundreds of millions.

FEBRUARY >

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Feb. 1

Penn Central — Collapse (1968)

Pennsylvania Railroad and New York Central Railroad merged to form Penn Central. Within two years, a merger meant to save two failing railroads created one of history’s biggest corporate collapses.

Feb. 2

Movie Gallery — Bankruptcy (2010)

Movie Gallery, parent of Hollywood Video, filed bankruptcy, setting off the liquidation of one of America’s largest video rental chains as competition from Netflix and Redbox eroded its business.

Bernard Ebbers — Death (2020)

WorldCom co-founder Bernie Ebbers died with a legacy that included one of the world’s biggest accounting frauds. Read More: Bernie Ebbers – WorldCom (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Feb. 3

Tulip Mania — Market Crash (1637)

A fabled tulip bubble popped when a routine auction in Haarlem finds no buyers. The financial mania that drove tulip bulb prices to insane levels proved centuries ago proved that even the hottest market will die the moment everyone decides not to show

Standard & Poor’s — Settlement (2015)

Standard & Poor’s agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle federal and state claims that it misled investors with inflated mortgage-security ratings before the financial crisis.

Feb. 4

Rolls-Royce — Bankruptcy (1971)

Rolls-Royce declared bankruptcy, blaming cost overruns on a jet engine contract with Lockheed Aircraft Corp. Britain’s politicians called it “a national tragedy.”

Feb. 5

Global Aviation Holdings — Bankruptcy (2012)

Global Aviation Holdings filed bankruptcy after years of debt-fueled expansion, grounding World Airways and North American Airlines. Expansion fueled by debt left the airline group unable to stay airborne.

RadioShack — Bankruptcy (2015)

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RadioShack filed its first bankruptcy after striking a deal to sell up to 2,400 stores to wireless provider Sprint and a hedge fund that was its biggest shareholder.

Lululemon Athletica — CEO Resignation (2018)

Laurent Potdevin resigned as CEO of Lululemon Athletica after violating company policy through a personal relationship with an employee. A leadership lapse at the top forced a sudden exit at a fast-growing brand. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Francesca’s Holdings — Bankruptcy (2026)

Francesca’s Holdings filed bankruptcy for the second time and announced plans to close its stores. A fast-fashion boutique chain couldn’t outrun weak sales and mounting debt, landing back in court just years after its first restructuring.

Feb. 6

Norfolk Southern — Industrial Disaster (2023)

Norfolk Southern released and burned vinyl chloride from a derailed train in East Palestine, Ohio. The controlled burn created a toxic plume, triggering evacuations and sparking a reputational and legal nightmare for the railroad. Read More: Drivin’ That Train (Business Blunders)

Feb. 7

Coinbase — Guilty Plea (2023)

A Coinbase former employee pleaded guilty in the first-ever cryptocurrency insider trading case, admitting he tipped others about which crypto assets were going to be listed.

Feb. 8

Bitfinex Hack Case — Guilty Plea (2022)

Ilya Lichtenstein and his wife, Heather Morgan, were arrested for laundering $4.5 billion in cryptocurrency stolen from the 2016 Bitfinex hack. Both pleaded guilty and received prison sentences. Ilya received a pardon in 2026.

Stryker — CEO Resignation (2012)

Stryker Corp. CEO Stephen MacMillan resigned from the medical device maker following an office romance with a flight attendant on the company’s corporate jet. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Feb. 9

Sears — Guilty Plea (1999)

Sears, Roebuck & Co. pleaded guilty and paid a $60 million criminal fine – the largest in history at the time – for illegally pursuing credit card debtors whose debts were discharged in bankruptcy. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Hewlett-Packard — CEO Firing (2005)

Hewlett-Packard’s board fired Carly Fiorina as CEO after years of controversy over the Compaq merger and weak stock performance.

Monsanto — Settlement (2016)

Monsanto agreed to pay an $80 million fine to the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle accounting fraud charges tied to its Roundup rebate program. The company inflated earnings by manipulating rebate timing, making results look stronger than they were.

Feb. 10

Daniel Overmyer — Fraud Conviction (1989)

A federal appeals court reinstated the bankruptcy-fraud conviction of Daniel H. Overmyer, the “warehouse king,” tied to the collapse of D. H. Overmyer Warehouse Co. Once operating more than 350 warehouses, the empire unraveled under fraud and financial strain. Read More:

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Feb. 11

Tyson Foods — Criminal Settlement (2011)

Tyson Foods agreed to pay a $4 million criminal penalty for bribing meat processing plant inspectors in Mexico. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Kellogg Brown & Root — Criminal Settlement (2011)

Kellogg, Brown & Root, a Houston-based industrial services company, agreed to pay $402 million to settle criminal charges stemming from a bribery scheme in Nigeria. KBR and its then-parent Halliburton also agreed to a $177 million settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Feb. 12

Research In Motion — Product Misjudgment (2007)

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RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie now-famously dismissed Apple’s iPhone as “one more entrant into an already very busy space.” It was the beginning of the end for the BlackBerry. Read More: CEOs Say The Dumbest Things (Blunder Lists)

Feb. 13

Paul Burks — Fraud Sentencing (2017)

Paul Burks, founder of ZeekRewards, was sentenced to more than 14 years in prison for operating a $900 million internet Ponzi scheme. The company promised easy returns from online auctions while paying investors with money from new victims. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

Drexel Burnham Lambert — Bankruptcy (1990)

Junk-bond pioneer Drexel Burnham Lambert filed bankruptcy, a victim of its own risky debt deals and mounting legal problems.

Feb. 14

Union Carbide — Settlement (1989)

Union Carbide agreed to a $470 million settlement over the Bhopal, India disaster, a deal widely condemned as inadequate compensation for victims of the worst industrial accident in history.

Meta Platforms — Settlement (2022)

Texas sued Facebook’s parent company Meta, saying It collected facial recognition data without consent. The company paid $1.4 billion to settle the lawsuit in July 2024.

Feb. 15

Interstate Hosiery Mills — Accounting Scandal (1938)

Trading in Interstate Hosiery Mills stock was suspended amid an accounting scandal. Inflated figures and shaky books caught up with the company, triggering a market halt and investor losses.

Berkshire Hathaway — Acquisition (1955)

Berkshire Fine Spinning Associates and Hathaway Manufacturing, two struggling textile companies, announced a merger that was supposed to halt their decline. The combined company kept losing money. Then Warren Buffett snapped up the wreckage and kept their name.

Feb. 16

Borders Group — Bankruptcy (2011)

Borders Group filed bankruptcy after struggling to compete with online retailers and e-books. A bookstore giant missed the shift to digital, setting the stage for its eventual liquidation.

Feb. 17

Philadelphia and Reading Railroad — Collapse (1893)

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Shares of Philadelphia and Reading Railroad plunged as a wave of selling triggered the collapse of one of the nation’s largest railroads. Years of over expansion and debt tied to coal speculation unraveled in a matter of days as confidence evaporated. The failure helped ignite the Panic of 1893, one of the deepest economic depressions of the 19th century.

Feb. 18

Sholam Weiss — Fraud Sentencing (2000)

Fugitive fraudster Sholam Weiss was sentenced in absentia to 845 years for looting and bankrupting the National Heritage Life insurance Read More: Shalom Weiss – National Heritage Life Insurance (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

UBS — Settlement (2009)

UBS reached a deferred prosecution deal and paid $780 million after helping Americans hide assets offshore. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Payless ShoeSource — Bankruptcy (2019)

Payless ShoeSource filed bankruptcy for the second time and began liquidating roughly 2,500 stores. It restructured once, then collapsed for good.

Pier 1 Imports — Bankruptcy (2020)

Pier 1 Imports filed bankruptcy after years of declining sales and mounting debt. Once a staple of suburban shopping centers, the brand now survives only online.

Feb. 19

Enron — Criminal Charges (2004)

Ex-Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling surrendered to the FBI in Houston after being indicted on 35 federal counts related to the company’s massive fraud. It was a pivotal moment in one of the most notorious corporate scandals in U.S. history. Read More: Jeffrey Skilling – Enron (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Feb. 20

Elon Musk — Reputational Crisis (2025)

On this day in 2025, Elon Musk waved a chainsaw at CPAC as he bragged about cutting jobs as head of the Department of Government Efficiency. It was not a good look for Tesla. Car sales plunged.

Feb. 21

Wells Fargo — Settlement (2020)

Wells Fargo agreed to pay $3 billion to settle charges brought by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission over the bank’s practice of opening accounts for customers without their knowledge. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

United Airlines — Operational Failure (2021)

United Airlines pulled 24 Boeing 777 jets from service after a midair engine explosion showered debris over Denver. It was a costly grounding that spotlighted serious failures in aircraft inspection and engine durability.

Feb. 22

Forsage — Fraud Charges (2023)

Federal prosecutors charged the founders of Forsage, a cryptocurrency platform, with running a $340 million global Ponzi scheme. The founders allegedly marketed the platform as a decentralized investment opportunity but instead operated it as a pyramid scheme that funneled money from new investors to earlier ones.

Feb. 23

Ozy Media — Fraud Charges (2023)

Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson was slapped with criminal and civil fraud charges for defrauding his investors. President Donald Trump commuted his prison sentence in March 2025. Read More: Carlos Watson – Ozy Media (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Feb. 24

Barings Bank — Collapse (1995)

Barings Bank came to grips with a stark reality: It’s trader Nick Leeson had gone rogue and left a fax apologizing for massive trading losses and offering his resignation. By the end of the day, it was clear the 223-year-old London bank had been fatally damaged. Read More: Nick Leeson – Barings Bank (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Feb. 25

Walmart — Settlement (2006)

Walmart agreed to pay $100 million to settle charges by the Federal Trade Commission that it deceived customers and delivery drivers. The case highlighted compliance failures inside one of the world’s largest retailers.

Eliyahu Weinstein — Fraud Sentencing (2014)

Eliyahu “Eli” Weinstein was sentenced to 22 years in prison for a $215 million real-estate Ponzi scheme. President Donald Trump commuted his sentence in 2021. Then in November 2025, he was sentenced to 37 years for yet another scam. Read More: Pardon My Ponzi (Business Blunders)

BitConnect — Fraud Charges (2022)

Satish Kumbhani, founder of BitConnect, was indicted by a federal grand jury for orchestrating a $2.4 billion global Ponzi scheme. The platform promised outsized crypto return, while paying investors with money from new victims.

Feb. 26

Meyer Blinder — Death (2004)

Penny stock fraudster Meyer Blinder died at age 82. His pump-and-dump brokerage once ranked 10th in the nation with 66 offices in 37 states. Read More: Meyer Blinder – Blinder & Robinson (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

General Motors — Financial Loss (2009)

On this day in 2009, General Motors posted a loss of more than $30.8 billion and warned that it could not survive much longer without additional government loans.

Family Dollar — Guilty Plea (2024)

Family Dollar Stores pleaded guilty to a federal misdemeanor and agreed to pay $41.675 million over insanitary conditions at a rodent-infested warehouse. Rats in the warehouse led to contaminated goods and a criminal plea. Read More: Losing $8 Billion In A Dollar Store (Business Blunders)

Feb. 27

Takata — Guilty Plea (2017)

Takata admitted it hid evidence that its airbags could explode and kill drivers, pleading guilty to wire fraud and agreeing to pay $1 billion in penalties. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Feb. 28

Groupon — CEO Firing (2013)

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Groupon fired its CEO Andrew Mason after losses, accounting restatements and a collapsing share price. “I’ve decided that I’d like to spend more time with my family,” Mason said in a departing email to employees. “Just kidding – I was fired today.”

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< JANUARY

APRIL >

< FEBRUARY

March 1

Tino De Angelis — Fraud Conviction (1965)

Tino De Angelis, was convicted for his role in the infamous salad oil scandal. He faked inventories of vegetable oil to secure massive loans, triggering a fraud that rattled banks and commodities markets. Read More: Tino De Angelis – Allied Crude Vegetable Oil (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

BAE Systems — Guilty Plea (2010)

London-based defense contractor, BAE Systems, pleaded guilty and paid a $400 million fine for lying to the U.S. government and obstructing investigations into its compliance program. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

March 2

Standard Oil — Regulatory Action (1892)

The Ohio Supreme Court ruled that Standard Oil’s trust violated state law and ordered it dissolved. The decision struck at one of the most powerful monopolies of the era, marking an early blow against corporate consolidation.

Scott Sullivan — Guilty Plea (2004)

Scott Sullivan, former chief financial officer of WorldCom, pleaded guilty to conspiracy, securities fraud, and filing false documents. He helped orchestrate one of the largest accounting frauds in U.S. history, hiding billions in losses to prop up the company’s stock.

American International Group — Financial Loss (2009)

American International Group officially posted the largest quarterly loss ever reported by a publicly traded company – $61.7 billion – underscoring the catastrophic risk-management failures that helped trigger the financial crisis.

Sports Authority — Bankruptcy (2016)

Sports Authority filed bankruptcy after struggling with debt and competition from online and discount rivals. The once-dominant sporting goods chain never recovered, closing all of its stores later that year.

March 3

Charles Ponzi — Birthday (1882)

Charles Ponzi was born in Lugo, Italy. Today, he’s the brand name on a classic fraud that never ends. Read More: Charles Ponzi – Boston Swindler (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Uber — Regulatory Evasion (2017)

The New York Times reported that Uber used a secret program it called “Greyball” to identify and evade regulators. The tactic exposed a culture willing to dodge oversight, fueling investigations and leadership turmoil.

Hanford Mission Integration Solutions — Settlement (2026)

The U.S. Department of Justice announced a $5 million settlement with Hanford Mission Integration Solutions over allegations that employees billed for work while taking naps or watching television. The case underscored oversight failures at a contractor involved in nuclear site cleanup. Read More: Homer Goes To Hanford (Business Blunders)

March 4

Mark Whitacre — Fraud Sentencing (1998)

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Mark Whitacre, a former executive at Archer Daniels Midland, was sentenced to nine years in prison for fraud and tax evasion tied to the global lysine price-fixing conspiracy. The whistleblower-turned-defendant helped expose the cartel while enriching himself in the process. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Josh Verne — Fraud Sentencing (2026)

Josh Verne, founder of Ownable, was sentenced to more than nine years in prison for defrauding investors out of millions by misrepresenting the company’s performance and diverting funds for personal use. The case exposed how a consumer rent-to-own startup became a vehicle for investor fraud. Read More: Billionaire Blind Spot (Business Blunders)

March 5

Martha Stewart — Fraud Conviction (2004)

Martha Stewart was convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and making false statements related to her sale of ImClone Systems stock.
She wasn’t convicted of insider trading, but of lying about it to federal investigators, a misstep that sent her to prison for five months. Read More: Martha Stewart – Martha Stewart Living (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Fidelity Investments — Settlement (2008)

Fidelity Investments was ordered to pay $8 million after the Securities and Exchange Commission alleged that the fund manager and 13 top executives and employees improperly accepted more than $1.6 million in travel, entertainment and gifts from outside brokers.

March 6

U.S. Banking System — Regulatory Action (1933)

Franklin D. Roosevelt declared a nationwide bank holiday, closing all U.S. banks to halt panic withdrawals. The move helped stabilize the financial system—but temporarily froze commerce across the country.

Boeing — CEO Firing (2005)

Boeing CEO Harry Stonecipher was dismissed after an internal investigation revealed a consensual relationship with a Boeing executive. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

March 7

Western Union — Acquisition Blunder (1876)

Alexander Graham Bell secured the patent for the telephone, a new technology that Western Union later passed on acquiring as it focused on its telegraph cables. Later accounts say Western Union executives dismissed the invention as “a scientific toy” and missed one of the most consequential opportunities in business history.

eToys — Bankruptcy (2001)

eToys, a high-flying dot-com toy seller, filed bankruptcy after burning through cash. A boom-era favorite collapsed when growth couldn’t outrun losses.

March 8

Circuit City — Shutdown (2009)

Circuit City closed all of its stores after filing bankruptcy.

RadioShack — Bankruptcy (2017)

RadioShack filed bankruptcy for the second time in just over two years, signaling the end for the once-iconic electronics chain. Crushed by declining mall traffic, mounting losses, and competition from online retailers, the company announced plans to close most of its remaining stores and liquidate assets.

Silvergate Capital — Collapse (2023)

La Jolla, Calif.-based Silvergate Capital announced it would wind down operations and voluntarily liquidate Silvergate Bank, a crypto-focused lender battered by deposit flight after the FTX collapse. A bank built around the crypto boom became one of its casualties when customers rushed for the exits.

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March 9

Donald Trump — Bankruptcy (1992)

Trump’s Castle Associates and Trump Plaza Associates filed bankruptcies. They were among six Trump companies that became insolvent over the years.

Eastern Air Lines — Bankruptcy (1989)

Eastern Air Lines filed bankruptcy, a decline that ultimately led to its shutdown in 1991. Once led by aviation pioneer Eddie Rickenbacker, the airline unraveled under debt, labor strife, and mismanagement.

Martin Shkreli — Fraud Sentencing (2018)

“Pharma Bro” Martin Shrikeli was sentenced to seven years in prison for fraud. Besides cheating investors, he’d outraged the public for jacking up the price of a lifesaving drug from $13.50 to $750 a pill. Read More: Martin Shrikeli – Turing Pharmaceuticals (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Roger Ng — Fraud Sentencing (2023)

Roger Ng, a former banker at Goldman Sachs, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in a multibillion-dollar bribery and money-laundering scheme tied to Malaysia’s 1MDB fund. Billions meant for development were siphoned off through corruption, fueling one of the largest financial scandals in recent history.

March 10

NASDAQ — Market Crash (2000)

The NASDAQ Composite peaked at the height of the dot-com bubble before beginning a historic collapse that wiped out trillions in market value. Investors chased hype over profits, until reality caught up with tech stocks.

LifeLock — Settlement (2010)

LifeLock agreed to a $12 million settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over deceptive advertising claims. Its CEO, Todd Davis, famously published his Social Security number and dared thieves to steal his identity, which they did repeatedly. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Silicon Valley Bank — Collapse (2023)

Regulators seized Silicon Valley Bank, the third-largest bank failure in U.S. history and the largest since the 2008 financial collapse.

March 11

World Health Organization — Regulatory Action (2020)

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The World Health Organization officially declared Covid-19 a global pandemic, accelerating shutdowns, market crashes, supply-chain disruptions and one of the sharpest economic contractions in modern history.

Modell’s Sporting Goods — Bankruptcy (2020)

Modell’s Sporting Goods filed bankruptcy after weak holiday sales and heavy debt strained the business. The family-run chain was already struggling when the pandemic finished it off.

March 12

Nortel Networks — Fraud Charges (2007)

U.S. and Canadian authorities announced civil fraud charges against former executives of Nortel Networks for manipulating reserves to inflate profits. The executives shifted earnings between periods to smooth results, making the company appear more stable than it was.

Fabrice Tourre — Settlement (2014)

Fabrice Tourre was ordered by a U.S. judge to pay fines and disgorgement in a civil fraud case tied to a mortgage-linked deal at Goldman Sachs. The complex product was destined to fail, while investors were left holding the losses.

Signature Bank — Collapse (2023)

Signature Bank failed after a significant run on deposits in a panic that followed Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse two days earlier.

March 13

Comtech — CEO Firing (2024)

Comtech said it fired its CEO Ken Peterman for conduct later revealed as a sexual relationship with a subordinate. He was later charged with insider trading. Read More: A CEO’s Road To Hell (Business Blunders)

March 14

Arthur Andersen — Criminal Charges (2002)

Federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment against accounting giant Arthur Andersen for shredding documents tied to the Enron scandal. The firm destroyed evidence to cover its tracks, helping bring down one of the world’s largest accounting firms.

Toys “R” Us — Shutdown (2018)

Toys ‘R’ Us announced it would liquidate its U.S. operations after failing to restructure roughly $5 billion in debt, marking the collapse of one of the most iconic retail chains in America.

March 15

Valeant Pharmaceuticals — Financial Distress (2016)

Valeant Pharmaceuticals said it would delay filing its annual report and warned it could default on debt after uncovering accounting irregularities tied to a specialty pharmacy. The disclosure sent the stock plunging, accelerating the collapse of one of Wall Street’s most aggressive roll-up stories.

Federal Reserve — Regulatory Action (2020)

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates to near zero and launched a massive quantitative easing program in an emergency Sunday action as the Covid-19 pandemic infected global markets. It was one of the most dramatic central bank interventions since 2008.

Apple — Settlement (2024)

Apple agreed to pay $490 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging it misled investors about iPhone demand in China. Optimistic forecasts masked weakening sales, leaving investors to absorb the fallout when reality set in.

March 16

Bear Stearns — Acquisition (2008)

Bear Stearns agreed to be acquired by JPMorgan Chase in a rescue deal facilitated by the Federal Reserve. “No we would not do something like Bear Stearns again,” JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon would say a decade later. “In fact I don’t think our Board would let me take the call.”

Forever 21 — Bankruptcy (2025)

Forever 21 filed bankruptcy for the second time and launched liquidation sales at its remaining 350-plus U.S. stores. A fast-fashion giant couldn’t keep up with shifting trends and mounting debt, ending in a full-scale shutdown.

March 17

Facebook — Data Scandal (2018)

News reports revealed that Facebook had improperly allowed Cambridge Analytica to harvest millions of users’ data, igniting one of the biggest tech privacy scandals in history. The data was used to target voters during the 2016 U.S. presidential election and the UK’s Brexit referendum. Cambridge collapsed. Facebook lost more than $130 billion in market value.

March 18

Leona Helmsley — Fraud Sentencing (1992)

Leona Helmsley was sentenced to four years in prison for tax evasion. The hotel magnate became infamous for the line, “We don’t pay taxes; only the little people pay taxes. The a remark made national headlines and defined her downfall. Read More: Leona Helmsely – Helmsely Hotels (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Stock Options Backdating — Accounting Scandal (2006)

The Wall Street Journal published a Pulitzer Prize-winning article, “The Perfect Payday,” which used data from University of Iowa finance professor Erik Lie to expose a widespread backdating scheme for stock options issued to corporate executives. Eventually, more than 130 companies were identified and more than 50 top executives and directors lost their jobs. The scandal spurred massive earnings restatements and more than $1 billion in fines and settlements. Read More: Dr. Lie (Business Blunders)

Samsung SDI — Guilty Plea (2011)

Samsung SDI agreed to plead guilty in a color display tube price-fixing conspiracy. Manufacturers colluded to fix prices on TV components, rigging a global market until regulators cracked down. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

March 19

HealthSouth — Fraud Charges (2003)

The Securities and Exchange Commission charged HealthSouth and its CEO Richard Scrushy with accounting fraud, alleging at least $1.4 billion in overstated earnings. He eventually went to prison for a bribery scandal involving former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman. Read More: Richard Scrushy – HealthSouth (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

March 20

Laser Tech — Accounting Scandal (2000)

Regulators accused Laser Tech executives of moving way too fast. The Colorado-based maker of speed guns for police was allegedly busy breaking bigger laws – booking revenue that didn’t exist and using a secret bank account to hide its accounting.

March 21

Time Warner — Settlement (2005)

Regulators charged Time Warner with fraud for inflating online ad revenue and AOL subscriber numbers, even after a prior cease-and-desist order. The company used round-trip deals to book revenue it effectively funded itself and counted unactivated bulk subscriptions to hit growth targets. It also misstated results tied to AOL Europe. The media giant paid a $300 million penalty, agreed to restate roughly $500 million in revenue, and faced charges against senior finance executives.

Twitter — Product Launch (2006)

Twitter founder Jack Dorsey posted history’s first tweet at 9:50 a.m. PST. It said, “just setting up my twttr.” It made eventually made him billions. It ruined civil discourse forever.

Markus Jooste — Executive Death (2024)

Former Steinhoff CEO Markus Jooste took his own life. Once considered one of South Africa’s richest businessman, he’d padded his company’s books with acquisitions, including Mattress Firm. Read More: A CEO Who Made His Own Bed (Business Blunders)

March 22

TelexFree — Fraud Sentencing (2017)

James Merrill, the former president of TelexFree received a six year prison sentence. Prosecutors called his global voice-over-internet company a billon-dollar pyramid scheme claimed he personally stole $3 billion from more than a million hardworking people worldwide who had signed up to peddle the multilevel marketing company.

March 23

BP — Industrial Disaster (2005)

A hydrocarbon vapor cloud ignited at the a BP oil refinery in Texas City, Texas. The explosion killed 15 workers anchored caused 180 injuries and severe damage to the refinery. It was the nation’s costliest refinery accident resulting in more than $200 million in damages and $2.1 billion in settlements and fines.

March 24

Exxon Valdez — Industrial Disaster (1989)

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The Exxon Valdez oil tanker spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil into the Prince William Sound in Alaska, one of the largest environmental disasters in history.

Sears Holdings — Acquisition (2005)

Kmart acquired Sears, creating Sears Holdings under investor Eddie Lampert. A merger of two struggling retailers only combined their problems, ending in one of the most notorious failures in retail history.

March 25

Jamie Olis — Fraud Sentencing (2004)

Former Dynegy tax executive Jamie Olis was sentenced to more than 24 years in prison for accounting fraud. He was convicted in scheme code named “Project Alpha” intended to inflate Dynegy’s cash flow by $300 million and cut its taxes by $79 million. It was one of the harshest penalties at the time for corporate corruption and later reduced to six years.

Kraft Heinz — Acquisition (2015)

Kraft Foods Group and H. J. Heinz agreed to merge, creating Kraft Heinz. A blockbuster deal built on cost-cutting and consolidation later struggled as shifting consumer tastes left legacy brands behind. Read More: Buffet’s Big Blunder (Business Blunders)

Boeing — CEO Resignation (2024)

Boeing said CEO Dave Calhoun would step down amid mounting safety and quality crises. Years of production failures and regulatory scrutiny finally forced a leadership shakeup. Read More: Boeing’s Lost Spirit (Business Blunders)

March 26

Salomon Brothers — Trading Error (1992)

A clerk at Salomon Brothers misinterpreted an $11 million order, booking 11 million shares instead. The error wiped out a late afternoon advance on the New York Stock Exchange and caused more than $500 million in losses for the prestigious firm. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Arthur Andersen — CEO Resignation (2002)

Joseph Berardino resigned as CEO of Arthur Andersen as the firm’s role in the Enron scandal came under scrutiny. The accounting giant’s credibility collapse, accelerating its downfall. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Waste Management — Fraud Charges (2002)

The Securities and Exchange Commission charged Waste Management and former executives with a sweeping accounting fraud that inflated earnings by about $1.7 billion. The case led to one of the largest restatements in corporate history.

March 27

Stanley Black & Decker — Settlement (2019)

Stanley Black & Decker paid more than $1.8 million for shipping more than $3.2 million worth of power tools to Iran between 2013 and 2014 in violation of trade sanctions placed on the rogue nation.

March 28

Three Mile Island — Industrial Disaster (1979)

The Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station near Harrisburg, Penn., suffered a partial meltdown. Equipment failures and human error triggered the worst nuclear accident in U.S. history, shaking public confidence in the industry for decades to come.

Sam Bankman-Fried — Fraud Sentencing (2024)

Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years and ordered to pay $11 billion following his conviction for seven counts of fraud, conspiracy and money laundering at the crypto exchange he founded, FTX. Read More: Sam Bankman-Fried – FTX (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Charlie Javice — Fraud Conviction (2025)

Charlie Javice was convicted of defrauding JPMorgan Chase when she sold her student-loan website for $175 million. She had puffed up its value with fake customer data, essentially selling the nation’s biggest bank a phony email list. She was later sentenced to more than seven years in prison. Read More: JPMorgan Chumps (Business Blunders)

March 29

Westinghouse Electric — Bankruptcy (2017)

Westinghouse Electric filed bankruptcy after massive cost overruns and construction losses sank the company. Flagship nuclear projects ran billions over budget, turning a bet on new reactors into a financial collapse.

General Motors — CEO Resignation (2009)

Rick Wagoner resigned as CEO of General Motors at the request of the U.S. government, which bailed out the automaker following the 2008 financial crisis.

March 30

Wells Fargo — Settlement (2023)

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The Federal Reserve and the Treasury slapped Wells Fargo with $97.8 million in sanctions for inadequate oversight. Regulators said the nation’s fourth-largest bank allowed a foreign bank to process about $532 million in prohibited transactions between 2010 and 2015.

March 31

Gibraltar Savings & Loan — Collapse (1989)

Gibraltar Savings and Loan failed amid the savings and loan crisis. Risky lending and weak oversight left the institution insolvent – Just another bank collapse that cost billions.

Charles Keating — Death (2014)

Charles Keating, the notorious former CEO of the failed Lincoln Savings & Loan, died at age 90. He once had five U.S. senators in his pocket, but they couldn’t save him from a 10-year prison sentence. The collapse of his thrift cost taxpayers more than $3 billion, one of the costliest failures at the time. Read More: Charles Keating – Lincoln Savings & Loan (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

OneTaste — Fraud Sentencing (2026)

OneTaste founder Nicole Daedone was sentenced to nine years in prison for her role in a forced a labor conspiracy. A wellness brand built around women’s empowerment devolved into psychological manipulation and sexual abuse. Read More: Silicon Valley Sex Farm (Business Blunders)

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April 1

IBM — CEO Resignation (1993)

IBM CEO John Akers retired following a tumultuous period that included a $5 billion annual loss and pressure from the board to resign.

Highmark — CEO Firing (2012)

Highmark fired CEO Kenneth Melani after his arrest. He reportedlt had a physical altercation involving the husband of a female employee with whom he had a relationship. A personal scandal at the top quickly became a corporate crisis, ending his tenure overnight. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Whiting Petroleum — Bankruptcy (2020)

Whiting Petroleum filed bankruptcy, becoming the first major U.S. shale producer to collapse as oil prices plunged. A debt-fueled drilling boom unraveled when crude prices crashed, sending the company into bankruptcy.

April 2

Starwood Hotels & Resorts — CEO Resignation (2007)

Starwood Hotels & Resorts forced CEO Steven Heyer to resign following a clash with the board over his management style and allegations of personal misconduct with women sent in an anonymous letter. He reportedly agreed to forfeit an estimated $35 million in severance compensation. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

New Century Financial — Bankruptcy (2007)

New Century Financial filed bankruptcy as mortgage defaults surged. A lender built on risky subprime loans collapse, foreshadowing the housing crisis to come. Top executives later faced civil fraud charges.

April 3

Panama Papers — Legal Exposure (2016)

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists published the Panama Papers exposing how some of the world’s wealthiest people illegally hide assets in offshore accounts to avoid taxes, evade sanctions and conceal crime and corruption.

April 4

Virgin Orbit — Bankruptcy (2023)

Virgin Orbit, founded by Richard Branson, filed bankruptcy after failing to secure funding following a failed rocket launch. A high-profile space venture ran out of cash when its technology and business mode fell short.

April 5

Wachovia Capital Markets — Settlement (2011)

Regulators announced an $11 million settlement with Wachovia Capital Markets, alleging misconduct in selling the kind of toxic debt that collapsed the economy in 2008: Collateralized debt obligations tied to mortgage-backed securities. Wells Fargo Securities, which acquired Wachovia, paid the fine.

April 6

Blockbuster — Acquisition (2011)

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Dish Network won a bankruptcy auction to acquire Blockbuster for $320 million, hoping to compete with Netflix. The deal included more than 1,700, almost all of which it closed by 2014.

April 7

Teapot Dome — Fraud Scandal (1922)

Interior Secretary Albert B. Fall secretly leased the Teapot Dome oil reserves in Wyoming to his friend Harry F. Sinclair without competitive bidding. It became one of the worst political scandals in American history – at least at the time.

99 Cents Only Stores — Bankruptcy (2024)

99 Cents Only Stores filed bankruptcy and announced plans to close all 371 U.S. stores. Rising costs and thin margins crushed the discount chain. A business built on razor-thin margins couldn’t survive rising costs.

April 8

Tom Petters — Fraud Sentencing (2010)

Tom Petters, whose company once owned Polaroid and Sun Country Airlines, was sentenced to 50 years in federal prison after being convicted of orchestrating a $3.65 billion Ponzi scheme and related frauds. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

JC Penney — CEO Resignation (2013)

Ron Johnson resigned as CEO of JC Penney after a failed turnaround that gutted sales and alienated core customers. The former Apple retailing executive scrapped discounts and reinvented stores only to drive shoppers away. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

April 9

Backpage — Shutdown (2018)

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and other U.S. authorities seized and shut down Backpage following an investigation into its role in facilitating illegal activity. What was billed as a classifieds platform became a hub for illicit transactions until the government shut it down.

Helios Technologies — CEO Resignation (2020)

Wolfgang H. Dangel stepped down as CEO of Helios Technologies following a personal relationship that violated company policy. A leadership lapse at the top quickly became a corporate problem, ending his tenure. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Publishers Clearing House — Bankruptcy (2025)

Publishers Clearing House filed bankruptcy citing surging online competition, rising costs and crushing debt. The sweepstakes icon known for showing up on prize doorsteps with oversize checks, stiffed its “forever winners” and sold what was left to ARB Interactive, a mobile gaming company.

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April 10

Best Buy — CEO Resignation (2012)

Brian Dunn resigned as CEO of Best Buy amid a board investigation. The company later disclosed that he’d exercised poor judgment in a close personal relationship with a female employee that violated company policy. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

April 11

New York Stock Exchange — Fraud Sentencing (1938)

Former New York Stock Exchange president Richard Whitney was sentenced to prison on grand larceny charges. The so-called “White Knight of Wall Street” had misappropriated funds from clients as well as the NYSE Gratuity Fund, set up for widows and orphans. Read More: Richard Whitney – New York Stock Exchange (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Borders Group — Acquisition Blunder (2001)

Borders Group partnered with Amazon to handle its online sales. The bookstore chain outsourced e-commerce to a competitor and gave away its digital future. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Xerox — Settlement (2002)

Xerox agreed to pay a $10 million civil penalty to the to settle accounting fraud charges. At the time, it was the largest penalty ever imposed on a public company in by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

April 12

Texaco — Bankruptcy (1987)

Texaco filed bankruptcy to manage a $10.5 billion judgment that it owed to Pennzoil. In a blockbuster legal judgment, a court had found that Texaco unlawfully interfered with Pennzoil’s deal to acquire Getty Oil. It was the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history at the time – a record that stood until Enron shattered it in 2001.

April 13

American Tissue — Fraud Conviction (2005)

American Tissue Corp.’s former CEO Mehdi Gabayzadeh was convicted in a $300 million bank and securities fraud scheme that bankrupted the nation’s fourth-largest tissue and pulp manufacturer and left 2,700 workers unemployed. He was later sentenced to 15 years in prison and ordered to forfeit $65 million.

SCWorx — Fraud Scheme (2020)

SCWorx Corp. issued a bogus press release claiming it would supply millions of Covid-19 test kits, sending its stock soaring more than 400%. The deal didn’t exist, turning a pandemic-era announcement into a textbook market manipulation scandal.

April 14

Lincoln Savings & Loan — Collapse (1989)

Federal regulators seized Lincoln Savings and Loan after risky investments and accounting maneuvers left it insolvent. One of the largest failures of the savings and loan crisis, the collapse helped expose widespread abuses across the industry. Read More: Charles Keating – Lincoln Savings & Loan (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

U.S. Tobacco Industry — Legal Action (1994)

Seven Big Tobacco CEOs testified before Congress that nicotine was not addictive, a claim later undermined by their own internal records.

Bernard Madoff — Death (2021)

Bernie Madoff died in federal prison at age 82. He’d served 12 of his 150-year prison sentence for swindling billions from trusting clients in what was one of history’s largest Ponzi schemes. Read More: Bernie Madoff – Madoff Securities (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

April 15

RMS Titanic — Industrial Disaster (1912)

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The RMS Titanic, a supposedly “unsinkable” British ocean liner, hit an iceberg. The tragedy took the lives of more than 1,500 passengers and crew, and it exposed fatal overconfidence in technology and safety planning. It also stunned underwriters at Lloyds of London.

Schlitz Brewing — Acquisition (1982)

Joseph Schlitz Brewing agreed to a $495 million merger with Stroh Brewing, ending the Milwaukee brewer’s independence after years of declining sales and labor unrest.

Volkswagen — Fraud Charges (2019)

Martin Winterkorn, former CEO of Volkswagen, was charged in Germany with fraud, breach of trust, and competition violations tied to its emissions scandal. The company rigged millions of cars to cheat emissions tests in what became known worldwide as “dieselgate.” He was later charged in the U.S. Read More: Slipping Away From Prosecutors (Business Blunders)

April 16

Cisco Systems — Profit Warning (2001)

Cisco Systems issued a major profit warning, signaling how sharply demand had collapsed during the dot-com bust. The warning punctured tech optimism, confirming the depth of the crash.

General Growth Properties — Bankruptcy (2009)

General Growth Properties, one of the nation’s largest shopping mall operators, filed what was then one of the largest real estate bankruptcies in U.S. history. With more than $27 billion in debt from aggressive acquisitions, it couldn’t withstand the 2008 financial crisis.

April 17

Enron — Executive Misconduct (2001)

On this day in 2001, Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling publicly snapped at an analyst’s question about missing financial disclosures with Thank you very much… asshole,” a startling display of executive tone-deafness that would become emblematic of the company’s culture of opacity and hubris. Read More: CEOs Say The Dumbest Things (Blunder Lists)

InfoWars — Bankruptcy (2022)

InfoWars filed bankruptcy as legal pressure mounted over false claims by its founder, Alex Jones, about the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Families won massive defamation verdicts after he falsely called the massacre a hoax, turning conspiracy into a financial collapse.

April 18

Charles L. Webster & Co. — Bankruptcy (1894)

The publishing firm founded by Mark Twain filed bankruptcy. The collapse of Charles L. Webster and Co. helped drive one of the greatest American authors to financial ruin. “A lack of money,” Twain once quipped, “is the root of all evil.”

Williams-Sonoma — Fraud Charges (2023)

A former executive at Williams-Sonoma was charged along with three others in an alleged multimillion-dollar fraud scheme. Prosecutors said the group diverted company funds and falsified records, turning a corporate role into a personal payday.

Fox News — Settlement (2023)

On this day in 2023, Fox News agreed to pay $787.5 million to settle a defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems over false claims about the 2020 election.

April 19

Fox News — Executive Firing (2017)

Fox News fired Bill O’Reilly after reports of sexual harassment settlements totaling $13 million made for a scandalous headline in the New York Times. Though he denied the allegations, news of the quiet settlements sparked a costly advertiser boycott and ended his two-decade run as the network’s top-rated host. Read More: Ponzi Once, Ponzi Twice (Business Blunders)

April 20

Deepwater Horizon — Industrial Disaster (2010)

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The Deepwater Horizon exploded and sank, triggering the largest marine oil spill in U.S. history. Safety failures and cost-cutting decisions led to a catastrophic blowout, killing 11 workers and spilling millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Wells Fargo — Settlement (2018)

Wells Fargo was fined $1 billion for auto-loan insurance and mortgage rate-lock abuses. Customers were charged for unwanted insurance and misled on mortgage fees, adding to the bank’s growing list of scandals.

U.S. Oil Markets — Market Crash (2020)

The price for a barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil dropped below zero for the first time in history. Oil companies had to pay someone to take it given a massive oversupply and lack of storage space during the pandemic. WTI closed at NEGATIVE $37.63.

April 21

Steven Hoffenberg — Guilty Plea (1995)

Towers Financial CEO Steven Hoffenberg pleaded guilty to running a $400 million Ponzi scheme that collapsed in 1993. The operation, one of the largest frauds of its era, counted a young Jeffrey Epstein as a paid consultant during its rise. Hoffenberg was later sentenced to 20 years in prison.

SunEdison — Bankruptcy (2016)

SunEdison filed bankruptcy after a debt-fueled acquisition binge collapsed under its own weight, toppling what had been one of the fastest-growing names in solar.

Volkswagen — Criminal Settlement (2017)

A federal judge in Detroit sentenced Volkswagen to three years of probation and a $2.8 billion criminal penalty for “dieselgate.” The German automaker sold cars that cheated on emissions tests. Read More: Slipping Away From Prosecutors (Business Blunders)

April 22

Electronic Data Systems — Market Loss (1970)

Ross Perot lost nearly $450 million. It was then the largest one-day paper loss that any one person had ever suffered on the New York Stock Exchange. Stock of his Plano, Texas-based Electronic Data cratered in a broader tech bust that followed years of frothy valuations.

Express — Bankruptcy (2024)

On this day in 2024, Express Inc. filed bankruptcy after years of declining sales and mounting losses. A mall-based fashion chain couldn’t keep up with shifting trends and online competition, ending in store closures and restructuring.

April 23

Coca-Cola — Product Failure (1985)

Coca-Cola launched “New Coke,” replacing its original formula. The reformulation sparked a consumer backlash, forcing the company to bring back “Coca-Cola Classic” just months later. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Ratners Group — Executive Misconduct (1991)

Gerald Ratner famously joked that his London-based jewelry company’s products were “total crap” during a speech at the Royal Albert Hall. The gaffe crushed sales and sparked a £500 million loss in stock value at Ratners, his namesake retailer. Read More: CEOs Say The Dumbest Things (Blunder Lists)

April 24

Wickes Companies — Bankruptcy (1982)

Wickes Companies filed bankruptcy after a debt-heavy acquisition strained its finances. A leveraged expansion left the building supplies and home improvement retailer unable to service its debt.

Michael Milken — Guilty Plea (1990)

Michael Milken pled guilty to a six-count felony information charging him with conspiracy, securities fraud, mail fraud, market manipulation and tax fraud. He served only about two years of a ten-year prison sentence, but burnished his reputation as a symbol of Wall Street fraud in the 1980s. Read More: Michael Milken – Drexel Burnham Lambert (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

NBCUniversal — CEO Firing (2023)

Jeff Shell was fired as CEO of NBCUniversal after an investigation into sexual harassment allegations. A top executive’s misconduct forced a sudden exit at one of the world’s largest media companies. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

April 25

Wachovia — Settlement (2008)

Wachovia, now part of Wells Fargo, agreed to pay $144 million in restitution and penalties after admitting that it allowed telemarketers to pull money directly from customer accounts without proper authorization. Scammers got direct access to people’s bank accounts, and the bank didn’t stop them.

April 26

Chernobyl Nuclear Plant — Industrial Disaster (1986)

Shoddy reactor design and flawed safety tests at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine lead to the world’s worst nuclear power plant accident. The disaster released a radioactive plume and set back nuclear power development for decades.

Computer Associates — Accounting Scandal (2004)

Computer Associates said it would restate $2.2 billion in revenue after an internal investigation found sales had been booked prematurely. The company pulled revenue forward to inflate results, turning fake growth into an accounting problem. Top executives later plead guilty to manipulating $2 billion in revenue and received prison sentences.

April 27

Archegos Capital Management — Fraud Charges (2022)

Federal prosecutors charged Bill Hwang following the $36 billion collapse of private investment firm Archegos Capital Management. Prosectors alleged Hwang and others they lied to banks to borrow billions and used the money to inflate a handful of stocks. When the bubble burst billions vanished almost overnight. “The lies fed the inflation, and the inflation led to more lies,” prosecutors said. Hwang was sentenced to 18 years in prison. Read More: Billion Dollar Reprobate (Business Blunders)

April 28

Bennett Funding Group — Fraud Sentencing (2000)

Patrick R. Bennett, former chief financial officer of Bennett Funding Group, was sentenced to 30 years in prison for his role in a massive Ponzi scheme. The company sold bogus leases to investors and used new money to pay old obligations until the scheme collapsed. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

Wall Street Firms — Settlement (2003)

Regulators announced a $1.4 billion settlement with major Wall Street firms – including Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Credit Suisse First Boston, Lehman Brothers, JPMorgan Chase, UBS Warburg, U.S. Bancorp and Piper Jaffray – over misleading stock research. Analysts hyped stocks to win business, leaving investors in the lurch when the dot.com bubble burst. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Jack Grubman — Settlement (2003)

Jack Grubman, a star analyst at Salomon Smith Barney, agreed to pay $15 million and be barred from the securities industry over civil allegations he issued biased stock research to win investment banking business. He hyped companies he privately doubted, leaving investors in harms way as the dot.com bubble burst.

Priceline Group — CEO Resignation (2016)

Darren Huston resigned as CEO of Priceline Group after an internal investigation found he had a personal relationship with an employee in violation of company policy. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Federal Reserve — Policy Statement (2021)

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell described rising inflation as “transitory.” Inflation didn’t go away anytime soon and Fed had to catch up. Read More: Our Deadhead Fed Head (Business Blunders)

April 29

Commodore International — Bankruptcy (1994)

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Commodore International filed bankruptcy and shut down after years of financial struggles, mismanagement and an inability to compete in a fast-changing PC era. In the 1980s, the Commodore 64 dominated in the U.S. while Commodore’s Amiga was wildly popular in Europe.

April 30

Chrysler — Bankruptcy (2009)

Chrysler filed bankruptcy and announced an alliance with Fiat with backing from the federal government. The iconic automaker was controlled by Cerberus Capital Management, a private equity firm that underinvested, and left taxpayers to help pick up the pieces.

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May 1

First Republic Bank — Collapse (2023)

Regulators seized First Republic Bank and sold it to JPMorgan Chase. The $229 billion bank’s failure followed the collapses of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. The San Francisco–based bank built a loan portfolio during a period of ultra-low interest rates, but failed to adapt as rates rose.

Kohl’s — CEO Firing (2025)

Kohl’s fired CEO Ashley Buchanan for failing to disclose a multimillion-dollar consulting contract awarded to a romantic partner. An undisclosed conflict of interest cost him a $20 million job. Read More: Million-Dollar Baby (Business Blunders)

May 2

E.F. Hutton — Guilty Plea (1985)

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EF Hutton pleaded guilty to about 2,000 criminal counts of fraud and paid millions in fines and restitution for a massive check-kiting scheme. The firm shuffled money between banks to create phony balances in one of the most infamous brokerage scandals of the 1980s, yet no executives went to jail.

Sotheby’s — Criminal Charges (2001)

A federal grand jury indicted A. Alfred Taubman, former chairman of Sotheby’s, for conspiring with Christie’s to fix commission rates. Rival auction houses secretly coordinated fees, rigging prices in the high-end art market.

Linens ’n Things — Bankruptcy (2008)

Linens ‘n Things filed bankruptcy and began closing its remaining U.S. stores, ending the run of a chain that once operated more than 500 locations nationwide. The collapse highlighted the pressures of debt and competition from big-box and online rivals.

Cambridge Analytica — Bankruptcy (2018)

Cambridge Analytica said it would shut down and file for bankruptcy amid fallout from its misuse of Facebook user data. The scandal exposed how personal data could be harvested and weaponized, triggering a global backlash.

May 3

U.S. Markets — Crash (1893)

A massive stock market sell-off marked the Panic of 1893 as rampant speculation ended with waves of bank, railroad, and business bankruptcies in one of the worst economic downturns of the 19th century.

Paramount Pictures — Regulatory Action (1948)

The Supreme Court ruled in United States vs. Paramount Pictures to break up the studio system that let Hollywood’s biggest companies control production, distribution, and theaters. Studios had rigged the system to block competition until the government forced them to give up their grip on the box office.

May 4

Aeropostale — Bankruptcy (2016)

Aeropostale filed bankruptcy after 13 consecutive quarters of losses. A teen retail staple lost relevance as fashion trends shifted.

J.Crew — Bankruptcy (2020)

J.Crew Group, Inc. filed bankruptcy as pandemic shutdowns and heavy debt strained the business. Too much debt left the retailer vulnerable to a virus that temporarily closed stores.

May 5

Jenny Craig — Bankruptcy (2023)

Jenny Craig filed bankruptcy and closed its U.S. and Canada weight-loss centers. A program built on in-person coaching couldn’t adapt to digital competition.

Credit Suisse — Guilty Plea (2025)

Credit Suisse pleaded guilty and was sentenced for conspiring to hide more than $4 billion from the Internal Revenue Service through hundreds of offshore accounts. The scheme helped wealthy clients evade taxes, extending a long-running pattern of misconduct at the bank. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

May 6

U.S. Markets — Crash (2010)

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged nearly 1,000 points in minutes in what was dubbed the Flash Crash. A trillion-dollar blink exposed the risks of high-speed, automated trading, forcing regulators to rethink market safeguards.

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May 7

Brown & Williamson — Legal Action (2004)

More than two dozen states said they would sue Brown & Williamson for targeting youth with its “Kool Mixx” marketing campaign. The ads used hip-hop imagery to promote cigarettes. Lawsuits led to a settlement, fines, and the campaign’s shutdown.

General Motors — Financial Loss (2009)

General Motors reported a $6 billion quarterly loss and warned it might not survive without additional government aid as it edged closer to bankruptcy.

Neiman Marcus — Bankruptcy (2020)

Neiman Marcus became the first major department store to file bankruptcy during the Covid-19 pandemic. Heavy debt and shuttered stores signaled deep trouble for brick-and-mortar retail. Read More: Needless Markup (Business Blunders)

May 8

Alex Mashinsky — Fraud Sentencing (2025)

Alex Mashinsky, founder of Celsius Network, was sentenced to 12 year in prison for his role in misleading investors about the company’s finances. A platform that promised safe, high returns collapsed, leaving customers locked out of billions. Read More: ‘Banks Are Not Your Friends’ (Business Blunders)

May 9

David Gentile — Fraud Sentencing (2025)

David Gentile, founder of GPB Capital Holdings, was sentenced to seven years in prison for orchestrating a $1.6 billion Ponzi scheme. Investor funds were used to pay earlier investors—masking losses until the scheme unraveled. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

May 10

East India Co. — Regulatory Action (1773)

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The British Parliament passed the Tea Act, effectively bailing out the struggling East India Co. The law allowed the company to sell tea directly to the colonies at reduced prices, undercutting local merchants.

JPMorgan Chase — Trading Loss (2012)

JPMorgan Chase revealed $2 billion in trading losses tied to a trader known as the “London Whale.” A hedge meant to reduce risk instead amplified it, exposing major failures in the bank’s controls.

May 11

Sunbeam — Accounting Scandal (1998)

Sunbeam reported a quarterly loss and denied channel stuffing accusations. It kept projecting strong earnings, just weeks before its accounting scandal exploded and CEO Al Dunlap was ousted.

Betsey Johnson — Bankruptcy (2012)

Betsey Johnson began liquidation sales after filing bankruptcy the previous month, undone by heavy debt and declining sales. Its stores vanished, but the brand survived, reemerging as a wholesale fashion label still selling its signature bold, colorful designs.

May 12

Nike — Reputational Crisis (1998)

Nike CEO and founder Phil Knight admitted that the iconic athletic shoe maker’s overseas labor practices had damaged its reputation, pledging sweeping reforms after years of criticism over factory conditions.

IndyMac Bank — Financial Distress (2008)

Mortgage lender IndyMac Bank warned in a regulatory filing that it might no longer be “well capitalized,” a red flag that foreshadowed its collapse and seizure by regulators just two months later during the financial crisis.

May 13

Warner-Lambert — Guilty Plea (2004)

Warner-Lambert agreed to plead guilty and pay more than $430 million to resolve charges that it illegally marketed Neurontin for unapproved uses, a pharmaceutical sales scandal that helped redefine the risks of off-label promotion.

UnitedHealth Group — CEO Resignation (2025)

Andrew Witty stepped down from UnitedHealth Group as scrutiny mounted over its Medicare Advantage billing and rising costs, with the insurer pulling its outlook, shares falling sharply, and former CEO Stephen Hemsley returning to steady the company. Read More: United Health Scare (Business Blunders)

May 14

Michael Wise — Fraud Sentencing (2003)

Michael Wise, once cleared in the Silverado Savings & Loan collapse, was sentenced for a Ponzi scheme in Aspen, a second act that ended in prison. Read More: Michael Wise – Silverado Savings & Loan (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

May 15

Office of Price Administration — Regulatory Action (1942)

The Office of Price Administration began nationwide gasoline rationing, forcing Americans to limit driving as the war strained fuel and rubber supplies.

Dow Corning — Bankruptcy (1993)

Dow Corning filed for bankruptcy as mounting lawsuits over its silicone breast implants overwhelmed the company, one of the largest product-liability crises of its time.

Martin Frankel — Guilty Plea (2002)

Martin Frankel pleaded guilty to 24 federal counts, including securities fraud, wire fraud, racketeering, and conspiracy, in a scheme that looted about $208 million from insurance companies, cementing his reputation as one of the most notorious insurance fraudsters in U.S. history. Read More: Martin Frankel – Thunor Trust (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

JC Penney — Bankruptcy (2020)

JC Penney filed bankruptcy under the weight of about $4 billion in debt, as pandemic shutdowns forced the 118-year-old retailer to close its stores and pushed it to the brink. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

May 16

Dex Media — Bankruptcy (2016)

Dex Media filed bankruptcy for the third time in seven years, a slow-motion collapse of the Yellow Pages era as search moved online.

McDonald's — Market Exit (2022)

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On this day in 2022, McDonald’s agreed to sell its business in Russia and exit the market following its invasion of Ukraine. A decades-long presence ended abruptly, turning geopolitics into a costly corporate retreat.

May 17

Continental Illinois — Collapse (1984)

The U.S. government orchestrated a rescue of Continental Illinois National Bank, a crisis that made it the largest bank failure of its era and introduced the idea that some banks were simply too big to fail.

Lucent Technologies — Settlement (2004)

Lucent Technologies agreed to pay $25 million to settle an U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges over $1.1 billion in bogus revenue in one of many -era accounting scandals. Regulators also charged several former executives.

Usama Malik — Guilty Plea (2023)

Usama Malik, former CFO of Immunomedics, pleaded guilty to insider trading tied to its $21 billion sale to Gilead Sciences, a scheme that ultimately landed him an 18-month prison sentence.

May 18

KPMG — Fraud Charges (2020)

Regulators charged three former KPMG audit partners with stealing regulator secrets and cheating on exams, a breakdown that led to prison sentences, a $50 million settlement and undermined trust in the firm’s oversight role.

Microsoft — Antitrust Charges (1998)

The Department of Justice and 20 states sued Microsoft for monopoly abuse, a case that nearly broke up the company before ending in a settlement that curbed its power.

May 19

Red Lobster — Bankruptcy (2024)

Red Lobster filed bankruptcy, citing heavy debt, an oversized restaurant footprint, and losses tied to its “endless shrimp” promotion as it sought to restructure and sell the business to lenders. Read More: How To Boil A Lobster (Business Blunders)

May 20

Citigroup / JPMorgan Chase / Barclays / Royal Bank of Scotland — Guilty Plea (2015)

Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase, Barclays, and The Royal Bank of Scotland pleaded guilty and paid criminal fines totaling more than $2.5 billion for manipulating U.S. dollars and euros in foreign exchange markets. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

May 21

Lou Pearlman — Fraud Sentencing (2008)

Lou Pearlman, renowned for launching‘NSync and the Backstreet Boys, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for a $300 million Ponzi scheme that collapsed his entertainment empire. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

May 22

Hertz — Bankruptcy (2020)

Hertz filed bankruptcy with about $19 billion in debt, a high-profile casualty of the pandemic as travel collapsed and its vast car fleet sat unused.

May 23

U.S. Tobacco Industry — Legal Action (1994)

The Mississippi Attorney General’s Office filed the first state lawsuit seeking to recover Medicaid costs from tobacco companies, launching a wave of litigation across the country.

Live Nation Entertainment — Antitrust Lawsuit (2024)

On this day in 2024, the Department of Justice, joined by state attorneys general, sued Live Nation Entertainment and Ticketmaster, accusing them of monopolizing the live-concert business and seeking remedies that could include breaking up the company. Read More: Ticketbastard (Business Blunders)

May 24

China — Credit Downgrade (2017)

Moody’s Investors Service downgraded China’s sovereign credit rating from Aa3 to A1, its first cut since 1989, citing rising debt and expectations that the country’s financial strength would erode.

May 25

Jeffrey Skilling — Fraud Conviction (2006)

Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling was convicted of fraud and conspiracy, a landmark verdict in one of the largest corporate scandals in U.S. history. Read More: Jeffrey Skilling – Enron (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

May 26

Mickey Monus — Fraud Conviction (1995)

Mickey Monus, founder of Phar-Mor, was convicted of fraud for orchestrating a massive accounting scheme that helped drive the discount drugstore chain into bankruptcy. Read More: Michael “Micky” Monus – PharMor (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

May 27

FIFA — Criminal Charges (2015)

Swiss authorities arrested seven senior Fédération Internationale de Football Association officials in Zurich at the request of the U.S. Department of Justice, as prosecutors unsealed a sweeping indictment alleging decades of racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering tied to soccer media and marketing rights.

May 28

Whitewater — Fraud Convictions (1996)

A jury convicted James McDougal, Susan McDougal, and Arkansas Governor Jim Guy Tucker of fraud in the Whitewater case, a scandal tied to the failed land deal involving associates of President Bill Clinton.

Ryan Salame — Sentencing (2024)

Ryan Salame, a top lieutenant in the FTX empire, was sentenced to 7½ years in prison for his role in the crypto exchange’s collapse. Read More: Clowns In Court (Business Blunders)

May 29

Ross Ulbricht — Sentencing (2015)

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Ross Ulbricht, creator of Silk Road, an anonymous online marketplace that used Bitcoin to facilitate the sale of illegal drugs, fake documents, and other illicit goods, was sentenced to life in prison, one of the harshest penalties ever imposed in a digital-age crime case. Trump pardoned him in January 2025.

May 30

Donald Trump — Fraud Conviction (2024)

A Manhattan jury found Donald Trump guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in a scheme to conceal hush money payments tied to the 2016 election, marking the first criminal conviction of a former U.S. president.

May 31

South Fork Dam — Industrial Disaster (1889)

The Johnstown Flood began when the South Fork Dam collapsed after heavy rains. The poorly maintained dam, owned a wealthy industrialists, failed catastrophically, unleashing a deadly wall of water. More than 2,200 people were killed, and the Keystone state disaster became a lasting example of negligence and failed oversight.

Arthur Andersen — Legal Ruling (2005)

The Supreme Court cleared Arthur Andersen of its Enron-era conviction, finding the jury instructions too vague, an exoneration that came after the firm had already collapsed.

Enloe State Bank — Collapse (2019)

Texas regulators shut down Enloe State Bank in Cooper, Texas, after uncovering fraud tied to falsified loans and insider misconduct. The FDIC stepped in as receiver.

DC Solar — Fraud Sentencing (2022)

On this day in 2022, Alan Hansen, co-owner of DC Solar, was sentenced to eight years in prison for his role in the $1 billion DC Solar Ponzi scheme, 2022 a fraud built on bogus solar equipment and tax credits. Read More: Trailer Trash Solar (Business Blunders)

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June 1

General Motors — Bankruptcy (2009)

General Motors filed for bankruptcy, one of the largest industrial failures in U.S. history, as the automaker collapsed under the weight of declining sales and mounting losses.

June 2

Diebold — Fraud Charges (2010)

Regulators charged Diebold, Inc. and three former executives with a scheme to inflate earnings, a case that led to a $25 million settlement and penalties against the individuals.

June 3

FTD — Bankruptcy (2019)

FTD filed bankruptcy under the weight of about $200 million in debt from its 2014 acquisition of ProFlowers, a deal that failed to deliver.

June 4

Dennis Kozlowski — Criminal Charges (2002)

Former Tyco International CEO Dennis Kozlowski was indicted in New York on charges of evading over $1 million million in sales tax on artwork. Read More: Dennis Kozlowski – Tyco (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Countrywide Financial — Fraud Charges (2009)

Regulators charged Angelo Mozilo and other Countrywide Financial executives with fraud and insider trading, a crisis-era case that resulted in a $67.5 million settlement.

June 5

Binance — Fraud Charges (2023)

Regulators filed a sweeping civil suit against Binance, its U.S. affiliate, and CEO Changpeng Zhao, alleging securities-law violations and misuse of customer assets. Zhao later pleaded guilty to criminal charges and received a four-month prison sentence. President Donald Trump pardoned him in 2025. Read More: Bombing Iran With Crypto (Business Blunders)

June 6

Freddie Mac — Executive Resignation (2003)

Freddie Mac’s board accepted the resignation of its chief financial officer, Vaughn Clarke, amid the company’s accounting scandal.

Uber — Executive Firing (2017)

Uber fired more than 20 employees after an internal probe into sexual harassment and bullying, part of a broader cultural reckoning at the company.

Coinbase — Fraud Charges (2023)

Regulators charged Coinbase with operating as an unregistered exchange, broker, and clearing agency, and also charged it over its staking-as-a-service program registration.

June 7

Webvan — Bankruptcy (2001)

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Webvan filed bankruptcy after spending heavily to build a nationwide grocery delivery network that never achieved profitability.

Uber — Executive Firing (2017)

Uber fired executive Eric Alexander after it emerged he had obtained and shared the medical records of an Indian rape victim, a shocking breach that underscored deeper cultural failures at the company.

Synchronoss Technologies — Fraud Charges (2022)

The Securities and Exchange Commission charged Synchronoss Technologies and seven former executives with accounting fraud tied to revenue recognition practices.

Kia — Product Recall (2024)

Kia recalled more than 460,000 Telluride SUVs over a fire risk, issuing a rare warning to park outside and away from buildings.

June 8

Pepsi-Cola — Bankruptcy (1923)

The Craven Holding Corp. purchased the Pepsi-Cola trademark, shortly after its founder Caleb Bradham declared bankruptcy. Bradham had marketed Pepsi since the 1890s but gambled on sugar price volatility and financial mismanagement, leading to his company’s bankruptcy just days earlier.

June 9

Scott Rothstein — Fraud Sentencing (2010)

Scott Rothstein was sentenced to 50 years in prison for running a $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme through his law firm. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

June 10

Sam Waksal — Fraud Sentencing (2003)

Sam Waksal was sentenced to seven years and three months in prison for fraud, perjury, and tax evasion tied to the ImClone Systems insider trading scandal, a case that also ensnared Martha Stewart. Read More: Sam Waksal – ImClone Systems (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

June 11

Warnaco Group — Bankruptcy (2001)

On this day in 2001, Warnaco Group, the apparel maker behind Calvin Klein jeans, filed bankruptcy. Burdened by heavy debt, licensing disputes, and an overextended expansion strategy, the company’s collapse marked a sharp reversal for a major player in the fashion industry.

June 12

ING Bank — Settlement (2012)

ING Bank agreed to pay $619 million to settle U.S. charges that it violated sanctions by processing transactions for Cuban and Iranian clients.

General Electric — CEO Resignation (2017)

Jeff Immelt said he would step down as CEO of General Electric after years of declining performance at the industrial giant.

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June 13

Revlon — Settlement (2013)

Revlon agreed to pay $850,000 to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges that it misled shareholders during a going-private transaction controlled by its majority owner, a deal that drew scrutiny for favoring insiders over minority investors.

Ross Stores — Fraud Charges (2014)

Regulators charged four Northern California residents for insider trading in Ross Stores stock options based on nonpublic monthly sales information leaked by a Ross employee.

Terraform Labs — Settlement (2024)

Terraform Labs and its founder Do Kwon agreed to a $4.45 billion settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission over the collapse of their Terra ecosystem. Kwon later pleaded guilty to criminal charges and was sentenced in a related fraud case. Read More: Kwon Don’t (Business Blunders)

June 14

South Sea Co. — Regulatory Action (1720)

Britain passed the Bubble Act after speculation around the South Sea Co. had reached a fever pitch. The trading company had been created to help manage government debt, and it drew investors into a frenzy with hype, easy credit, and political connections. The scandal became one of history’s most notorious examples of financial mania.

R. Allen Stanford — Fraud Sentencing (2012)

On this day in 2012, R. Allen Stanford was sentenced to 110 years in prison for orchestrating a $7 billion Ponzi scheme, one of the largest in U.S. history. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

June 15

Rajat Gupta — Fraud Conviction (2012)

Rajat Gupta, the former head of McKinsey & Co.and a Goldman Sachs director, was convicted of insider trading for leaking confidential boardroom information to Raj Rajaratnam. He later received a two-year prison sentence and a $5 million fine. Read More: Rajat Gupta – Goldman Sachs (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

\Revlon filed bankruptcy as it grappled with a heavy debt load and supply chain disruptions that left it struggling to stock shelves and compete.

June 16

Pacific Gas and Electric — Guilty Plea (2020)

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Pacific Gas and Electric pleaded guilty to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter for its role in the 2018 Camp Fire, which killed 85 people and destroyed the town of Paradise, California.

June 17

Dennis Kozlowski — Fraud Conviction (2005)

Dennis Kozlowski, former CEO of Tyco International, was convicted on multiple counts including grand larceny, securities fraud and falsifying business records for looting the company of more than $100 million. Read More: Dennis Kozlowski – Tyco (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Fisker — Bankruptcy (2024)

Fisker filed bankruptcy after burning through cash, struggling with production and quality issues on its Ocean SUV, and failing to secure a needed investment. It marked the second collapse of a company founded by Henrik Fisker after the earlier failure of Fisker Automotive in 2013. Read More: Fisker The Frisker (Business Blunders)

June 18

Apple — CEO Resignation (1993)

John Sculley stepped down as CEO of Apple after a series of strategic missteps, including an over-reliance on high-priced Macintosh models and a confusing product lineup. Under his leadership, the company had lost market share to lower-cost Windows PCs and struggled to define its direction.

OceanGate — Industrial Disaster (2023)

Stockton Rush, CEO of OceanGate, died when the company’s Titan submersible suffered a catastrophic implosion during a dive to the wreck of the RMS Titanic. The disaster came after years of reported warnings from industry experts about the vessel’s experimental design and safety practices. Read More: Sub Moron (Business Blunders)

June 19

Men’s Wearhouse — Executive Ouster (2013)

George Zimmer, founder and longtime spokesman of Men’s Wearhouse, was ousted by the company’s board, ending a decades-long run in which his persona were synonymous with the brand amid a growing rift over corporate governance and strategy. “You’re going to love the way you look,” he would advertise. “I guarantee it.” Read More: Zimmer a guaranteed fit for Treasury chief (The Denver Post)

Bear Stearns — Fraud Charges (2008)

Federal prosecutors indicted Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin, former managers at Bear Stearns, on securities fraud and conspiracy charges tied to the collapse of two subprime mortgage hedge funds that helped foreshadow the financial crisis.

June 20

U.S. Tobacco Industry — Settlement (1997)

Major tobacco companies and state attorneys general announced a proposed $368.5 billion national settlement, an ambitious deal that collapsed in Congress but paved the way for a historic agreement the following year.

Uber — CEO Resignation (2017)

Travis Kalanick resigned as CEO of Uber under pressure from major investors following a series of scandals and reports of a toxic workplace culture.

Walmart — Settlement (2019)

Walmart agreed to pay more than $282 million to resolve U.S. charges that it paid bribes to accelerate store growth in Mexico, Brazil, India and China, violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

June 21

Penn Central — Bankruptcy (1970)

Penn Central Transportation Co. filed bankruptcy, then the largest corporate collapse in U.S. history, after its disastrous merger of the Pennsylvania Railroad and New York Central Railroad and years of financial mismanagement.

Intel — CEO Resignation (2018)

Brian Krzanich resigned as CEO of Intel after the company learned he had a past consensual relationship with an employee in violation of its policies. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Rite Aid — Fraud Charges (2002)

Regulators charged Rite Aid and several former executives, including former CEO Martin Grass, with a massive accounting fraud that inflated earnings by billions of dollars.

June 22

Continental Congress — Regulatory Action (1775)

The Continental Congress authorized its first major issue of paper currency to fund the Revolutionary War. With nothing to back them and no reliable taxing power behind it, the notes quickly became a worthless.

Eastman Kodak — Product Shutdown (2009)

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Eastman Kodak announced it would stop selling its iconic Kodachrome film, ending a 74-year run as digital photography overtook the company’s core business.ng, a Chicago-based manufacturer, filed bankruptcy. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Gold Standard Baking — Bankruptcy (2022)

On this day in 2022, Gold Standard Baking, a major supplier of croissants and baked goods to restaurants and retailers, filed bankruptcy, citing rising labor and operating costs that strained its business.

June 23

United Kingdom — Market Disruption (2016)

The United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union in the Brexit referendum, a decision that triggered market turmoil and has since acted as a long-lasting drag on economic growth.

Wirecard — Executive Arrest (2020)

Markus Braun, the former chief executive of Wirecard, a digital payments and financial services company, was arrested after turning himself in to prosecutors, a day after the German company admitted that €1.9 billion in cash likely did not exist.

June 24

Breitling Energy — Fraud Charges (2016)

On this day in 2016, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charged Chris Faulkner, CEO of Breitling Energy, and others in an $80 million fraud scheme, a case that later led to his conviction and a 15-year prison sentence.

June 25

WorldCom — Accounting Scandal (2002)

WorldCom disclosed that it had improperly booked more than $3.8 billion in operating expenses as capital expenditures, one of the largest accounting frauds in U.S. history. It also said it fired Chief Financial Officer Scott Sullivan.

Adelphia Communications — Bankruptcy (2002)

Adelphia Communications filed bankruptcy after a fraud that hid billions in debt brought down one of the nation’s largest cable companies.

CEC Entertainment — Bankruptcy (2020)

CEC Entertainment, parent of Chuck E. Cheese, filed bankruptcy as pandemic shutdowns hammered its business, forcing store closures.

June 26

HCA — Settlement (2003)

HCA Inc., formerly Columbia/HCA Healthcare, agreed to pay $631 million to settle allegations that it submitted false claims to Medicare, part of what was then the largest healthcare fraud case in U.S. history; former CEO Rick Scott had resigned years earlier and later became a governor and U.S. senator. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

June 27

America West Airlines — Bankruptcy (1991)

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America West Airlines filed bankruptcy as high debt and rising fuel costs following the Gulf War strained the Phoenix-based carrier; it later emerged from bankruptcy in 1994.

John Rigas — Fraud Sentencing (2005)

John Rigas, founder of Adelphia Communications, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for his role in a multibillion-dollar fraud that looted the cable television company. Read More: John Rigas – Adelphia Communications (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Barclays — Settlement (2012)

Barclays agreed to pay $450 million in fines to U.S. and U.K. regulators to settle allegations it manipulated the LIBOR benchmark interest rate, triggering global investigations into rate-rigging by major banks.

June 28

Volkswagen — Settlement (2016)

Volkswagen agreed to a $14.7 billion U.S. settlement over “Dieselgagte,” an emissions cheating scheme. Read More: Slipping Away From Prosecutors (Business Blunders)

June 29

Richard Scrushy — Fraud Conviction (2006)

Richard Scrushy was convicted in a public corruption case involving a scheme to buy a state regulatory seat, months after being acquitted in the HealthSouth fraud trial. Read More: Richard Scrushy – HealthSouth (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Bernard Madoff — Fraud Sentencing (2009)

Bernard Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison for running a decades-long Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of tens of billions of dollars, one of the largest frauds in financial history. Read More: Bernie Madoff – Madoff Securities (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

June 30

Jeffrey Epstein — Guilty Plea (2008)

Jeffrey Epstein pleaded guilty to state prostitution charges involving a minor and was sentenced to 18 months, a controversial deal that drew widespread criticism, particularly after his sentence included work-release. Read More: Banking On Epstein (Business Blunders)

LifeLock — Fraud Settlement (2010)

The Wall Street Journal featured a LifeLock advertisement in which CEO Todd Davis displayed his real Social Security number, part of a “dare” that resulted in his identity being stolen at least 13 times. The campaign, which featured the number on billboards and print media, prompted a FTC investigation, culminating in a $12 million settlement over deceptive advertising.

Fox News — Settlement (2023)

Fox News agreed to pay $12 million to settle lawsuits brought by Abby Grossberg, who alleged she was coerced into giving misleading testimony in litigation tied to Dominion Voting Systems, which had accused the network of defamation over false claims about the 2020 election.

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July 1

Abraham Lincoln — Regulatory Action (1862)

President Abraham Lincoln signed the Revenue Act of 1862, creating the first U.S. income tax to finance the Civil War.

Del Monte Foods — Bankruptcy (2025)

Del Monte Foods, the 138-year-old canned food giant, filed bankruptcy, citing declining consumer demand and high costs related to storing excess inventory.

July 2

Pacific Gas & Electric — Settlement (1996)

Pacific Gas &Electric agreed to a record $333 million settlement in the Erin Brockovich-led Hinkley groundwater contamination case– one of the largest environmental lawsuit payouts in U.S. history.

Napster — Shutdown (2001)

Napster shut down its music-sharing service after a federal court ordered it to stop facilitating copyright infringement, marking the collapse of the platform that had upended the music industry and ignited the digital piracy era.

Samuel Israel III — Fraud Sentencing (2008)

Samuel Israel III, founder of BayouGroup, was arrested after surrendering to police, ending a fugitive saga after he faked his own death to avoid serving a 20-year sentence for investor fraud. Read More: Samuel Israel III – Bayou Group (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

July 3

Philip Morris — Settlement (1997)

Philip Morris announced a massive settlement with Mississippi over Medicaid costs tied to smoking-related illnesses, part of the wave that culminated in the Master Settlement Agreement.

Barclays — CEO Resignation (2012)

Bob Diamond resigned as CEO of Barclays amid the LIBOR manipulation scandal, after regulators found the bank had submitted false borrowing rates used to help set a benchmark tied to trillions of dollars in financial contracts.

Lucky Brand — Bankruptcy (2020)

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On this day in 2020, Lucky Brand Dungarees, a Los Angeles-based denim retailer filed bankruptcy, citing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sales.

July 4

News of the World — Fraud Scandal (2011)

A lawyer for the family of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler revealed that police told them her voicemail had been hacked by the News of the World. This revelation, which indicated the paper accessed her phone shortly after her disappearance in 2002, triggered a massive scandal.

July 5

Ken Lay — Death (2006)

Enron founder Ken Lay died of a heart attack just weeks after being convicted on fraud and conspiracy charges tied to one of the largest corporate scandals in U.S. history. Read More: Ken Lay – Enron (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

July 6

Dynegy — Bankruptcy (2012)

Dynegy filed bankruptcy after a debt-fueled expansion collided with falling power prices, forcing a restructuring that wiped out shareholders and handed the company to its lenders.

July 7

Boeing — Guilty Plea (2024)

Boeing agreed to plead guilty to a felony fraud charge tied to its deadly 737 Max crashes, but the deal later unraveled, and prosecutors ultimately withdrew the charge, avoiding a criminal conviction for the aerospace giant. Read More: Con Air (Business Blunders)

July 8

Adelphia Communications — Fraud Conviction (2004)

John Rigas and Timothy Rigas were convicted of hiding billions in debt while looting Adelphia Communications. They were later re-sentenced to 12 and 17 years in prison. Read More: John Rigas – Adelphia Communications (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Brooks Brothers — Bankruptcy (2020)

Brooks Brothers filed bankruptcy, citing financial distress from the Covid pandemic, which accelerated the 200-year-old retailer’s struggles with declining demand for formal business attire.

July 9

X — CEO Resignation (2025)

Linda Yaccarino stepped down from X, capping a rocky run defined by advertiser pullbacks and constant disruption at the social media platform owned by Elon Musk. Read More: Better To Be An Ex-CEO Than An X CEO (Business Blunders)

July 10

Peregrine Financial — Bankruptcy (2010)

Peregrine Financial filed bankruptcy after overstating revenues by hundreds of millions. The filing occurred one day after the firm’s founder and CEO, Russell Wasendorf Sr., attempted suicide and left a note confessing to a 20-year fraud that involved over $100 million in missing customer funds.

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July 11

Coca-Cola — Product Failure (1985)

The Coca-Cola Co. announced “Coca-Cola Classic,” retreating from the New Coke fiasco in a tacit admission of a legendary marketing blunder. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

IndyMac Bank — Collapse (2008)

IndyMac Bank failed, its bet on risky Alt-A and “liar loans” turning a mortgage boom into one of the biggest bank collapses in U.S. history.

Christopher Kirchner — Fraud Sentencing (2024)

Christopher Kirchner, former CEO of Slync, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for fraud after treating investor money like a personal expense account. He’d created a Salesforce-like platform for supply chain logistics. Then he used company funds to bankroll a lavish lifestyle, including luxury travel and high-end purchases. Chris Kirchner – Slync (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Papa John's — Executive Ouster (2018)

John Schnatter resigned as chairman of Papa John’s International after using a racial slur during a company training call. The –ounder’s own words torched the brand he built, triggering backlash, lost partnerships, and a rapid corporate cleanup. Read More: CEOs Say The Dumbest Things (Blunder Lists)

July 12

Allianz Global Investors — Guilty Plea (2023)

Allianz Global Investors U.S. pleaded guilty to criminal securities fraud charges and agreed to pay more than $5 billion in penalties and restitution. Prosecutors said the firm misled investors about downside risks in Structured Alpha funds which collapsed during the Covid market shock – one of the largest hedge-fund fraud cases in recent history.

July 13

Marc Dreier — Fraud Sentencing (2009)

Marc Dreier was sentenced to 20 years in prison for a $740 million fraud that used fake promissory notes to fleece hedge funds. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

Celsius Network — Bankruptcy (2022)

Celsius Network filed bankruptcy after freezing customer withdrawals. Its founder Alex Mashinsky was later charged with fraud for allegedly misleading investors about the platform’s risks. Read More: ‘Banks Are Not Your Friends’ (Business Blunders)

Conrad Black — Fraud Conviction (2007)

Conrad Black, head of newspaper giant Hollinger International, owner of the Chicago Sun-Times and other major papers, was convicted of fraud and obstruction for siphoning company funds. He was later sentenced to six and a half years in prison. President Donald Trump pardoned him in 2019.

July 14

Bernard Ebbers — Fraud Sentencing (2005)

Bernard Ebbers, former CEO of WorldCom, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in an $11 billion accounting fraud. Read More: Bernie Ebbers – WorldCom (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

July 15

Goldman Sachs — Settlement (2010)

Goldman Sachs paid a then-record $550 million to settle Securities and Exchange Commission charges over a subprime mortgage deal that misled investors at the height of the financial crisis.

July 16

Trump Taj Mahal — Bankruptcy (1991)

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The Trump Taj Mahal filed bankruptcy, the first of several filings by Donald Trump-controlled casino and hotel businesses over the following decades.

July 17

F.W. Woolworth — Shutdown (1997)

F. W. Woolworth Co. announced it would close its remaining U.S. five-and-dime stores, ending a 117-year run as big-box and specialty retailers left the once-dominant chain behind.

Goldman Sachs — CEO Resignation (2018)

On this day in 2018, Lloyd Blankfein announced he would step down as CEO of Goldman Sachs after steering the firm through the financial crisis and years of scrutiny that followed.

July 18

Jordan Belfort — Fraud Sentencing (2003)

Jordan Belfort, the “Wolf of Wall Street,” was sentenced to four years in prison for running a massive securities fraud and mone laundering scheme. Read More: Jordan Belfort – Stratton Oakmont (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

July 19

Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. — Bankruptcy (2015)

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The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. filed bankruptcy a second time, marking the final collapse of a grocery giant that couldn’t keep up with modern competitors.

CrowdStrike — Operational Failure (2024)

CrowdStrike pushed a faulty update to its Falcon Sensor security software that crashed millions of Microsoft Windows systems worldwide, grounding flights, disrupting hospitals, and knocking businesses offline in one of the largest IT outages in history. Read More: Canary In a Crowdstrike (Business Blunders)

Astronomer — CEO Resignation (2025)

Astronomer CEO Andy Bryon resigned after he was spotted on a Jumbotron canoodling with the company’s HR director. Read More: Just Smile And Wave (Business Blunders)

July 20

BP — CEO Resignation (2010)

Tony Hayward resigned as CEO of BP after mismanaging the response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, a crisis that spiraled into one of the worst environmental disasters in history. Read More: CEOs Say The Dumbest Things (Blunder Lists)

July 21

WorldCom — Bankruptcy (2002)

WorldCom filed bankruptcy, then the largest corporate bankruptcy in U.S. history, after a massive accounting fraud came to light. Read More: Bernie Ebbers – WorldCom (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Toshiba — Accounting Scandal (2015)

Toshiba admitted it had overstated profits by more than $1 billion over several years, as executives pressured employees to inflate results, triggering a sweeping leadership shakeup and a collapse in trust.

Fox News — CEO Resignation (2016)

Roger Ailes resigned as CEO of Fox News amid sexual harassment allegations against him and other top network personalities, triggering a major leadership crisis.

July 22

Dell — Settlement (2010)

Regulators charged Dell Inc. and senior executives, including Michael Dell, with disclosure and accounting fraud. The regulator said the company used undisclosed payments from Intel and accounting maneuvers to make it appear it consistently met Wall Street expectations. Dell agreed to pay a $100 million penalty, while Michael Dell personally paid $4 million and other executives also faced fines.

Gina Champion-Cain — Guilty Plea (2020)

Gina Champion-Cain, a San Diego restaurateur, pleaded guilty to running a massive Ponzi scheme that involved the sale of fake liquor license loans. She was later sentenced to 15 years in prison.

July 23

Trendon Shavers — Fraud Charges (2013)

Regulators charged Trendon Shavers with running a Bitcoin-denominated Ponzi scheme, one of the first major crypto fraud crackdowns. Shavers, operating “Bitcoin Savings and Trust,” promised outsized returns but instead used new investor funds to pay earlier participants. The Texas man was later ordered to pay more than $40 million in disgorgement and penalties, and was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

July 24

Billy McFarland — Fraud Charges (2018)

Regulators charged Billy McFarland with fraud tied to the disastrous Fyre Festival, a luxury festival that devolved into chaos. He later went to prison. Read More: Billy McFarland – Fyre Festival (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Christina Chapman — Fraud Sentencing (2025)

Christina Chapman was sentenced to eight and a half years in prison for a $17 million scheme that placed North Korean IT workers in U.S. jobs using stolen identities, generating revenue for the regime.

July 25

Amazon — Product Failure (2014)

Amazon released the Fire Phone, which flopped badly and was discontinued shortly after.

July 26

Robert Brennan — Fraud Sentencing (2001)

Penny stock huckster Robert E. Brennan was sentenced to more than nine years in prison for money laundering and bankruptcy fraud, ending years of illegal penny-stock pump-and-dump schemes. Read More: Robert Brennan – First Jersey Securities (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Ben Franklin Stores — Bankruptcy (1996)

Ben Franklin Retail Stores filed bankruptcy, hastening the demise of a classic five-and-dime retailer that couldn’t keep up with modern competition.

July 27

Joseph Nacchio — Fraud Sentencing (2007)

Joseph Nacchio, former CEO of Qwest Communications, was sentenced to six year in prison for insider trading after the company was embroiled in an accounting scandal and teetered on the brink of bankruptcy. Read More: Joe Nacchio – Qwest (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

July 28

Cadence Design Systems — Guilty Plea (2025)

Cadence Design Systems agreed to plead guilty and pay more than $140 million to resolve criminal charges for exporting sensitive chip-design technology to a Chinese military university in violation of U.S. export controls. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

July 29

Q.T. Wiles — Fraud Conviction (1994)

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Q.T. Wiles, former CEO of MiniScribe, was convicted of fraud for orchestrating an accounting scandal that included shipping boxes of bricks disguised as inventory. Read More: Q.T Wiles – Miniscribe (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Citigroup — Fraud Charges (2010)

Regulators charged Citigroup and two executives with misleading investors about its exposure to subprime mortgage-related assets. The bank later agreed to pay $75 million to settle the charges.

Helios Technologies — CEO Firing (2024)

Helios Technologies fired CEO Josef Matosevic for violating company policy related to a consensual relationship with an employee. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

July 30

IG Farben — Criminal Conviction (1948)

IG Farben executives were convicted in a Nuremberg tribunal for their roles in Nazi war crimes, marking a landmark moment in holding corporate leaders accountable.

Jimmy Hoffa — Disappearance (1975)

Teamsters leader Jimmy Hoffa vanished without a trace while heading to a meeting with reputed mob figures outside a restaurant in suburban Detroit– one of the most infamous disappearances in U.S. history.

George W. Bush — Regulatory Action (2002)

George W. Bush signed the Sarbanes–Oxley Act into law, a sweeping crackdown on corporate accounting abuses after scandals like Enron and WorldCom.

Bed Bath & Beyond — Shutdown (2023)

Bed Bath & Beyond shut down its remaining stores after filing bankruptcy, ending a 52-year run undone by shifting retail trends and mounting losses.

July 31

Bear Stearns — Bankruptcy (2007)

Two Bear Stearns hedge funds filed bankruptcy, wiping out roughly $1.6 billion in investor funds and signaling an early crack in the subprime mortgage meltdown.

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Aug. 1

British Airways / Korean Air — Guilty Plea (2007)

British Airways and Korean Air pleaded guilty to fixing air cargo prices and agreed to pay $300 million each, part of a global cartel that inflated shipping costs. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Aug. 2

Wade Cook — Fraud Sentencing (2007)

Wade Cook, author of “Wall Street Money Machine,” was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for tax fraud tied to his investment seminar empire. Read More: Wade Cook – Wade Cook Financial Corp (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Lord & Taylor — Bankruptcy (2020)

Lord & Taylor filed bankruptcy, a collapse that soon led to the liquidation of its stores and the end of the historic department store chain.

Brookstone — Bankruptcy (2018)

Brookstone filed bankruptcy for the second time in four years, as declining mall traffic and missteps hurt sales of its gadgets, massage chairs and travel gear.

Aug. 3

Bank of America — Settlement (2009)

On this day in 2009, Bank of America agreed to pay $33 million to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges that it misled investors about billions in bonuses paid to Merrill Lynch employees during the financial crisis.

Aug. 4

Bristol-Myers Squibb — Settlement (2004)

Bristol Myers Squibb agreed to pay $150 million to resolve charges regarding a fraudulent earnings management scheme. The company was accused of channel stuffing to inflate revenue by $1.5 billion between 2000 and 2001.

Martin Shkreli — Fraud Conviction (2017)

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Martin Shkreli, the “Pharma Bro” who raised the price of a life-saving drug from $13.50 to $750 per pill overnight, was convicted of securities fraud for deceiving hedge fund investors. He was later sentenced to seven years in prison. Read More: Martin Shkreli – Turing Pharmaceuticals (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Aug. 5

Standard & Poor’s — Credit Downgrade (2011)

Standard & Poor’s downgraded the United States’ sovereign credit rating from AAA to AA+, the first such cut in U.S. history, a rating it has never regained.

Aug. 6

Gerald Payne — Fraud Sentencing (2001)

Gerald Payne, founder of Greater Ministries International, was sentenced to 27 years in prison for running a $500 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded more than 18,000 investors. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

Hewlett-Packard — CEO Resignation (2010)

Hewlett-Packard announced the resignation of CEO Mark Hurd following a sexual harassment claim by a former contractor. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Barneys New York — Bankruptcy (2019)

Barneys New York filed bankruptcy, citing soaring rent costs at its flagship stores among the pressures squeezing the high-end retailer.

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Aug. 7

Love Canal / Hooker Chemical — Industrial Disaster (1978)

On this day in 1978, Jimmy Carter declared a federal health emergency at Love Canal after toxic waste buried by Hooker Chemical Co. contaminated the community.

Aug. 8

Lance Poulsen — Fraud Sentencing (2008)

Lance K. Poulsen, former CEO of National Century Financial Enterprises, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for witness tampering tied to a $3 billion securities fraud scheme.

Robert Shapiro — Fraud Sentencing (2019)

Robert H. Shapiro of the Woodbridge Group was sentenced to 25 years in prison for running a $1.3 billion Ponzi scheme that duped thousands of investors. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

Aug. 9

Resolution Trust Corp. — Regulatory Action (1989)

George H. W. Bush signed a law creating the Resolution Trust Corp. to clean up failed savings and loans in a taxpayer-backed bailout following years of reckless lending and fraud.

Firestone / Ford Motor Co. — Product Recall (2000)

Firestone and Ford Motor Co. announced a recall of 6.5 million tires linked to deadly rollovers, a crisis that exposed safety failures and strained one of the auto industry’s longest-standing partnerships.

Aug. 10

Jeffrey Epstein — Death (2019)

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Jeffrey Epstein was found dead in the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York while awaiting trial. The city’s medical examiner later ruled his death a suicide. Read More: Party With Mr. Dahmer (Business Blunders)

Donald Trump — Legal Action (2022)

Donald Trump invoked the Fifth Amendment during a deposition in a civil investigation by the New York Attorney General’s Office into his business practices. The probe later resulted in a civil fraud judgment against him and The Trump Organization.

Aug. 11

Sam Bankman-Fried — Bail Revocation (2023)

Sam Bankman-Fried was jailed after a judge revoked his bail over witness tampering concerns in the FTX fraud case. Read More: Sam Bankman-Fried – FTX (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Aug. 12

Mexico — Debt Default (1982)

Mexico told U.S. officials and international lenders it could no longer service its foreign debt, triggering the Latin American debt crisis, a shock that plunged the region into a “Lost Decade” before relief arrived years later.

Do Kwon — Guilty Plea (2025)

Do Kwon, co-founder of Terraform Labs, pleaded guilty to fraud tied to the $40 billion collapse of the TerraUSD and Luna cryptocurrencies. He was later sentenced to 25 years in prison. Read More: Kwon Don’t (Business Blunders)

Aug. 13

Henry Ford — Product Failure (1941)

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Henry Ford unveiled his “soybean car” featuring a plastic body that was partially made from the legumes. He claimed it would revolutionize auto manufacturing. It never went into production.

Midway Airlines — Bankruptcy (2002)

Midway Airlines filed bankruptcy, becoming one of the many aviation casualties of the post-9/11 downturn as rising costs and collapsing demand grounded yet another carrier.

Mark Frissora — Settlement (2020)

Regulators charged Mark Frissora, the former CEO of Hertz Global Holdings, with aiding and abetting the company’s inaccurate financial reporting. Regulators said he pressured employees to “find money” through accounting changes that inflated results and misled investors. Frissora agreed to repay nearly $2 million in bonuses and a civil penalty.

Aug. 14

Colonial Bank — Collapse (2009)

Colonial Bank of Montgomery, Ala., with roughly $25 billion in assets, was seized by regulators, marking one of the largest bank collapses of the financial crisis. The downfall was fueled by a massive mortgage fraud involving Taylor Bean & Whitaker of Ocala, Fla., which left the bank holding billions in bogus assets.

Jeffrey Skilling — CEO Resignation (2001)

On this day in 2001, Jeffrey Skilling abruptly resigned as CEO of Enron, citing “personal reasons,” just months before the company’s accounting scandal unraveled into one of the largest corporate collapses in U.S. history. Read More: Jeffrey Skilling – Enron (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Aug. 15

Richard Nixon — Regulatory Action (1971)

Richard Nixon ended the gold standard for the U.S. dollar and imposed a 90-day nationwide freeze on wages and prices in an unprecedented bid to curb inflation. The sweeping measures, announced as part of his “New Economic Policy,” marked a dramatic expansion of federal control over the economy and a turning point in modern monetary policy.

Reliant Energy — Settlement (2005)

On this day in 2005, California Attorney General Bill Lockyer announced a $460 million settlement with Reliant Energy to resolve claims it gouged ratepayers, withheld power, and manipulated electricity and natural gas prices during the California energy crisis of 2000–01.

Aug. 16

Toronto Stock Exchange — Trading Halt (1989)

A powerful solar flare triggered a geomagnetic storm that disrupted computer systems and forced the Toronto Stock Exchange to halt trading, a reminder that even financial markets aren’t immune to space weather and that problems can hit from 93 million miles away.

Countrywide Financial — Liquidity Crisis (2007)

Countrywide Financial drew down its entire $11 billion emergency credit line as funding markets seized and fears of bankruptcy mounted. The same day, Fitch Ratings downgraded the company to BBB+, just above junk status, as the subprime mortgage crisis began to engulf the largest lender in the U.S.

Aug. 17

Phar-Mor — Bankruptcy (1992)

Phar-Mor, then one of the fastest-growing drugstore chains in the U.S., filed bankruptcy amid revelations of a massive accounting fraud that ultimately totaled more than $1 billion. Read More: Michael “Micky” Monus – PharMor (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Tobacco Industry — Regulatory Action (2006)

A U.S. District Judge ruled that major tobacco companies had violated federal racketeering laws by deceiving the public about the health risks of smoking for 50 years, ordering them to issue corrective statements to consumers.

Aug. 18

Hewlett-Packard — Product Failure (2011)

Hewlett-Packard abruptly abandoned its webOS devices, killing its TouchPad tablet and smartphones just weeks after launch. The exit marked one of the shortest electronics product launches in history and came and just as competitors surged ahead in the fast-growing mobile market.

The Trump Organization — Guilty Plea (2022)

The Trump Organization’s Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg, pleaded guilty running a tax fraud scheme and agreed to testify against Donald Trump. He was later sentenced to five months in prison in return for his testimony against Trump.

Samsung Electronics — Product Failure (2016)

Samsung Electronics officially launched the Samsung Galaxy Note7, a flagship smartphone that soon became a global fiasco. Reports of battery fires forced recalls, flight bans, and ultimately the product’s discontinuation.

Aug. 20

Leona Helmsley — Death (2007)

Leona Helmsley, the hotel billionaire once dubbed the “Queen of Mean,” died after serving prison time for tax evasion in a case that made her a symbol of elite excess and the belief that “only the little people pay taxes.” Read More: Leona Helmsely – Helmsely Hotels (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Aug. 21

Long-Term Capital Management — Collapse (1998)

Long-Term Capital Management, the highly leveraged hedge fund once hailed as a model of financial sophistication, lost roughly $550 million in a single day as the Russian financial crisis roiled global markets and trading spreads moved sharply against its positions. The losses helped trigger a near-collapse weeks later that led to a Federal Reserve–brokered bailout by major Wall Street firms.

Guaranty Bank — Collapse (2009)

Regulators closed Guaranty Bank of Austin, Texas, marking another casualty of the financial crisis as bad loans and mounting losses overwhelmed the institution.

Teva Pharmaceuticals — Criminal Settlement (2023)

Teva Pharmaceuticals USA agreed to pay a $225 million criminal penalty to resolve Justice Department charges that it took part in generic-drug price-fixing conspiracies. The resolution also required Teva to divest a key drug line and donate $50 million in medicines. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Aug. 22

Frank Quattrone — Deferred Prosecution Agreement (2006)

On this day in 2006, Frank Quattrone reached a deferred prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors, settling his long-running criminal case tied to IPO allocation practices during the dot-com boom. The deal avoided a third trial and effectively ended one of Wall Street’s most closely watched prosecutions.

Woodbridge Group — Fraud Charges (2018)

On this day in 2018, the regulators charged multiple brokers for selling unregistered securities tied to the $1.2 billion Woodbridge Group of Companies Ponzi scheme, alleging they misled investors while collecting millions in commissions. Many later settled, agreeing to return ill-gotten gains, pay penalties, and accept industry bans.

Aug. 23

Microsoft — CEO Resignation (2013)

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Steve Ballmer announced he would retire as CEO of Microsoft within 12 months, ending a 13-year tenure. During his reign the company remained highly profitable but missed key shifts in mobile and search as rivals like Apple and Google surged ahead.

Aug. 24

Emulex — Fraud Scheme (2000)

An imposter posing as Emulex, a data-center equipment maker, issued a bogus press release claiming accounting irregularities and executive resignations. The fake news triggered a massive selloff that briefly wiped out billions in market value before the hoax was uncovered. The culprit, Mark S. Jakob, later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to prison for securities fraud.

August 25

Harry S. Truman — Regulatory Action (1950)

Harry S. Truman ordered the U.S. Army to seize control of the nation’s railroads to avert a nationwide strike that threatened to disrupt the economy during the Korean War. The extraordinary move underscored the government’s willingness to take direct control of critical industries in times of crisis.

Visa U.S.A. — Executive Resignation (1993)

H. Robert Heller abruptly resigned as president of Visa U.S.A., a surprise exit that underscored leadership turmoil at the credit card giant as it lost market share to rival Mastercard.

Donald Trump — Executive Overreach (2025)

Donald Trump attempted to remove Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve Board, citing alleged mortgage fraud, in an unprecedented challenge to the central bank’s independence. Cook sued days later, arguing the move violated the law’s “for cause” requirement, setting off a high-stakes legal battle over presidential power that reached the Supreme Court.

Aug. 26

Burger King — Acquisition (2014)

Burger King announced it would acquire Tim Hortons in an $11 billion deal and relocate the combined company’s headquarters to Canada. The transaction was structured as a tax inversion, allowing the new parent company to benefit from Canada’s lower corporate tax rate. It drew political backlash in the U.S. but was soon forgotten.

Johnson & Johnson — Legal Judgment (2019)

An Oklahoma judge ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $572 million for its role in fueling the state’s opioid crisis, finding the company’s marketing practices contributed to a public nuisance.

Aug. 27

Ford Motor Co. — Product Failure (1957)

Ford Motor Co. introduced the Edsel, a heavily hyped new car line that quickly became one of the most infamous failures in American business history, plagued by poor design, confusing branding, and weak demand. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Hooper Holmes — Bankruptcy (2018)

Hooper Holmes, which operated as Provant Health Solutions, filed bankruptcy after struggling with declining demand for its workplace health screening services. The collapse disrupted wellness programs used by employers nationwide, leaving workers and insurers scrambling to replace services like biometric screenings and health assessments.

Aug. 28

Prudential Securities — Settlement (1996)

Prudential Securities agreed to a $600 million settlement with regulators over allegations it defrauded mutual fund investors through improper sales practices, including pushing risky limited partnerships on unsuspecting customers. The settlement marked one of the largest brokerage enforcement actions of the era.

Tim Leissner — Guilty Plea (2018)

Former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner pleaded guilty in the 1MDB scandal, a global fraud that diverted billions from a Malaysian state fund through bribery and shell-company laundering. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Herbalife — Settlement (2020)

On this day in 2020, Herbalife Nutrition agreed to pay more than $123 million to resolve charges under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, stemming from bribery and accounting violations tied to its operations in China.

Aug. 29

Waste Management — Settlement (2005)

Former executives of Waste Management agreed to pay more than $30 million to settle accounting fraud charges tied to a scheme that overstated profits by roughly $1.7 billion, one of the largest restatements of its time.

Joel Steinger — Fraud Sentencing (2014)

Joel Steinger was sentenced to 20 years in prison for orchestrating a $1 billion-plus viatical and life insurance fraud through Mutual Benefits Corp., a scheme that preyed on investors seeking returns from life insurance policies.

Spirit Airlines — Bankruptcy (2025)

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Spirit Airlines filed bankruptcy for the second time in less than a year, just months after emerging from a prior restructuring. The repeat filing underscored the airline’s deep financial troubles as mounting losses and a failed turnaround left it unable to stabilize its business. Read More: Calling Spirit Airlines On The Ouija Board (Business Blunders)

Aug. 30

Hewlett-Packard — Settlement (2010)

Hewlett-Packard agreed to pay $55 million to settle allegations it overcharged the U.S. government under contracts with the General Services Administration and other federal agencies, resolving claims it failed to provide required pricing discounts.

Aug. 31

Dole Food Co. — Legal Judgment (2015)

A Delaware court found directors and executives of Dole Food Company liable for $148 million in damages for manipulating the company’s stock price to benefit controlling shareholder David H. Murdock during a take-private deal, a landmark ruling on corporate governance and shareholder rights.

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Sept. 1

Nestlé — CEO Firing (2025)

Nestlé fired its CEO Laurent Freixe less than a year after he took the helm following an internal investigation that confirmed an undisclosed relationship with a subordinate, a breach of company policy. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Sep. 2

U.S. Treasury — Founding (1789)

The U.S. established the Department of the Treasury with Alexander Hamilton as its first Secretary. Just years later, Treasury insider William Duer used his position to fuel reckless speculation, collapsing in the Panic of 1792 and landing in debtors’ prison.

Pfizer — Criminal Settlement (2009)

Pfizer agreed to pay $2.3 billion to resolve criminal and civil charges stemming from the illegal promotion of drugs for unapproved uses, then the largest health care fraud settlement in U.S. history. The deal included a $1.195 billion criminal fine, the largest ever imposed in the U.S. at the time. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Bed Bath & Beyond — Executive Death (2022)

On this day in 2022, Gustavo Arnal, the chief financial officer of Bed Bath & Beyond, died by suicide amid a period of severe financial distress and mounting scrutiny at the once-dominant company.

Kraft Heinz — Corporate Breakup (2025)

On this day in 2025, Kraft Heinz announced plans to split into two separate companies effectively unwinding its decade-old merger after years of sluggish growth and underperformance. Read More: Buffett’s Big Blunder (Business Blunders)

Sept.3

Reed Slatkin — Fraud Sentencing (2003)

Reed Slatkin, co-founder of EarthLink, was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison for running a $600 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded hundreds of investors. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

Microsoft — Acquisition Blunder (2013)

Microsoft announced plans to acquire Nokia’s Devices & Services business for €5.44 billion, a bid to revive its struggling position in the smartphone market. Less than two years later, Microsoft took a staggering $7.6 billion impairment charge, meaning the acquisition was worth less than nothing.

Sept. 4

Al Dunlap — Settlement (2002)

Al Dunlap, the former chairman of Sunbeam known as “Chainsaw Al” for his mass layoffs, agreed to settle civil fraud charges. He agreed to pay $500,000 and accept a permanent ban from serving as an officer or director of a public company.

Sept. 5

Financial Freedom Report — Fraud Charges (2007)

Regulators charged 26 defendants in a $428 million securities fraud tied to investments sold through their Financial Freedom Report. The scheme targeted senior citizens with promises of high, fixed returns from hotel timeshares. Many defendants later settled, agreeing to pay restitution and penalties, and several were barred from the securities industry.

Theranos — Collapse (2018)

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Theranos, the defunct startup founded by Elizabeth Holmes, began liquidating and distributing assets to creditors, marking the final unwind of one of Silicon Valley’s most notorious corporate collapses. Read More: ElizabethHolmes – Theranos (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Sept. 6

Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac — Government Takeover (2008)

The U.S. placed mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship as mounting losses threatened the financial system, marking one of the most dramatic interventions of the housing crisis.

Fox News — Settlement (2016)

Fox News agreed to pay $20 million to settle sexual-harassment claims brought by anchor Gretchen Carlson, part of a scandal that led to the ouster of CEO Roger Ailes.

Sept. 7

Drexel Burnham Lambert — Fraud Charges (1988)

Regulators charged Drexel Burnham Lambert and its star junk-bond trader Michael Milken with securities fraud, a landmark white-collar case that ultimately contributed to the firm’s collapse and reshaped Wall Street’s high-yield bond market. Read More: Michael Milken – Drexel Burnham Lambert (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Sept. 8

Recording Industry Association of America — Legal Action (2003)

The Recording Industry Association of America filed lawsuits against 261 individuals, some of them just children, accusing them of illegally sharing copyrighted music online in one of the first major legal crackdowns on peer-to-peer file sharing. The campaign, aimed at curbing piracy, sparked widespread backlash and debate over digital rights and enforcement.

Sept. 9

Financial Corp. of America — Bankruptcy (1988)

Financial Corp. of America filed bankruptcy after being seized by the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corp., one of the largest failures of the savings and loan crisis. The collapse reflected years of risky real estate lending and deregulation that left the thrift industry exposed to massive losses.

Quiksilver — Bankruptcy (2015)

Quiksilver, one of the first surfwear brands to go public, filed bankruptcy as mounting debt, declining sales, and competition from fast-fashion retailers eroded its once-iconic position.

CBS — CEO Resignation (2018)

Leslie Moonves resigned as chairman, president, and CEO of CBS, effective immediately, following multiple allegations of sexual misconduct and harassment. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Sept. 10

Lehman Brothers — Collapse (2008)

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Lehman Brothers announced plans to spin off roughly $30 billion in troubled real estate assets and sell a majority stake in its investment management division after reporting a $3.9 billion quarterly loss. The desperate restructuring failed to restore confidence, and the firm collapsed just days later.

Eddie Antar — Death (2016)

Eddie Antar, the founder of Crazy Eddie whose name became synonymous with retail fraud, died after serving time for a massive accounting scheme that inflated profits and misled investors. Read More: Eddie Antar – Crazy Eddie (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Tricolor Holdings — Bankruptcy (2025)

Tricolor Holdings filed for bankruptcy as rising defaults and funding pressures overwhelmed the subprime auto lender’s business model. Read More: Going All Enron On Them (Business Blunders)

Sept. 11

Drexel Burnham Lambert — Guilty Plea (1989)

Drexel Burnham Lambert pleaded guilty to felony securities violations and agreed to pay $650 million in fines and penalties, one of the largest settlements of its kind at the time, sealing the fate of the junk-bond era’s most notorious firm. Read More: Michael Milken – Drexel Burnham Lambert (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Norfolk Southern — CEO Firing (2024)

Norfolk Southern announced it had fired CEO Alan Shaw over a consensual relationship with the company’s general counsel that violated corporate policy. Read More: Drivin’ That Train (Business Blunders)

Sept. 12

US Airways — Bankruptcy (2004)

US Airways filed bankruptcy for the second time in two years, as rising costs, labor disputes, and intense competition continued to batter the carrier.

BP — CEO Resignation (2023)

Bernard Looney resigned as CEO of BP after an internal investigation revealed he had not fully disclosed multiple relationships with colleagues, violating company policy. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Sept. 13

Oppenheimer & Co. — Settlement (2022)

Regulators charged Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. and other underwriters for violating municipal bond disclosure requirements, alleging they failed to adequately vet issuers’ financial information before selling bonds to investors. The firms agreed to settlements including penalties and undertakings to improve compliance.

Zymergen — Settlement (2024)

Zymergen, an Emeryville, Calif.-based biotechnology company. agreed to pay $30 million to settle Securities and Exchange Commission charges. Regulators alleged it misleading investors in its initial public stock offering about its market potential and sales prospects of its products. Zymergen raised about $530 million in its 2012 IPO in April 2021 and filed bankruptcy in 2023.

Sept. 14

Delta Air Lines / Northwest Airlines — Bankruptcy (2005)

On this day in 2005, Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines both filed bankruptcy, marking one of the largest simultaneous restructurings in aviation history as rising fuel costs and intense competition battered the industry.

Sept. 15

Lehman Brothers — Bankruptcy (2008)

Lehman Brothers filed bankruptcy, the largest in U.S. history, triggering panic across global financial markets and marking a defining moment of the financial crisis. CEO Dick Fuld stepped down as the firm collapsed. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Sept. 16

Apple — Executive Ouster (1985)

Steve Jobs resigned from Apple following a power struggle with CEO John Sculley and the board, stripping the co-founder of control over the company he built. The ouster came after disappointing sales of the Macintosh and internal clashes over strategy, a move widely seen as a defining misstep before Jobs’ eventual return years later.

American International Group — Government Bailout (2008)

The Federal Reserve rescued American International Group with an $85 billion emergency loan. Losses tied to its derivatives portfolio pushed theglobal insurance giant to the brink of collapse, igniting backlash against “too big to fail” fiancial firms.

Sept. 17

New York Stock Exchange — CEO Resignation (2003)

Richard Grasso resigned as chairman and chief executive of the New York Stock Exchange. He stepped down following intense pressure and controversy regarding his $139.5 million pay package.

Duke Energy — Settlement (2003)

Duke Energy Trading and Marketing agreed to pay a $28 million civil penalty to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to settle charges of false reporting and attempted manipulation of natural gas prices.

Occupy Wall Street — Protest Movement (2011)

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Occupy Wall Street began protesting in New York’s Zuccotti Park, channeling public anger over the financial crisis, bank bailouts, and rising inequality into a global movement that challenged corporate power and Wall Street excess.

Russell Wasendorf Sr. — Fraud Conviction (2012)

Russell Wasendorf Sr. pleaded guilty to fraud and lying to regulators after admitting to a years-long scheme that siphoned more than $200 million in customer funds at Peregrine Financial Group.

General Motors — Criminal Settlement (2015)

General Motors agreed to pay $900 million to resolve criminal charges over faulty ignition switches linked to fatalities, exposing years of safety failures and delayed recalls.

Sept. 18

Jay Cooke & Co. — Collapse (1873)

The Panic of 1873 began when investment bank Jay Cooke & Co. failed after overextending itself financing railroad expansion, particularly the Northern Pacific Railway. The collapse triggered a wave of bank failures and market panic in the United States and Europe, setting off a prolonged economic downturn known as the Long Depression.

Toys “R” Us — Bankruptcy (2017)

Toys “R” Us filed one of the largest retail bankruptcies in U.S. history, as heavy debt from a 2005 leveraged buyout collided with rising competition from Amazon and other online retailers. The once-dominant toy chain was ultimately unable to overcome its financial burden.

Netflix — Product Failure (2011)

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings announced plans to split the company’s DVD-by-mail business into a separate brand called Qwikster. The move, following a controversial price hike, sparked a customer revolt and forced a swift reversal.

Volkswagen — Fraud Charges (2015)

The Environmental Protection Agency accused Volkswagen of using software to cheat emissions tests in diesel vehicles, triggering the global “Dieselgate” scandal and forcing the company to acknowledge the deception.

Sept. 19

Mark Swartz — Fraud Sentencing (2005)

Mark Swartz, the former chief financial officer of Tyco International, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for looting the company of hundreds of millions of dollars in unauthorized bonuses and expenses.

JPMorgan Chase — Criminal Settlement (2013)

JPMorgan Chase agreed to pay $920 million to settle criminal charges alleging illegal trading in precious metals and Treasuries markets.

Cboe Global Markets — CEO Resignation (2023)

CBOE Global Markets announced that CEO Edward Tilly had resigned after a board investigation found he failed to disclose personal relationships with colleagues. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

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Sept. 20

Akamai Technologies — Fraud Charges (2013)

Regulators charged a former executive of Akamai Technologies with tipping nonpublic information as part of the insider-trading network tied to Raj Rajaratnam and the Galleon Group. The case extended one of the most sweeping insider-trading crackdowns in Wall Street history. Read More: Raj Rajaratnam – Galleon Group (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Sept. 21

Berkeley Premium Nutraceuticals — Criminal Charges (2006)

A federal grand jury indicted Berkeley Premium Nutraceuticals, its owner Steve Warshak, and others on charges including conspiracy, mail, wire, and bank fraud. The indictment alleged a $100 million scheme to defraud consumers and banks. The fraud involved deceptive advertising, some featuring “Smiling Bob,” pitching a “male sexual enhancement” supplement called Enzyte. Warshak was later convicted and sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.

Goldman Sachs / Morgan Stanley — Regulatory Change (2008)

Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley were allowed to convert into bank holding companies, ending the era of standalone Wall Street investment banks. The shift gave them access to Federal Reserve funding and a pathway to federally insured deposits amid a financial crisis.

Sept. 22

U.S. Tobacco Industry — Fraud Charges (1999)

The Department of Justice filed a civil racketeering lawsuit against major tobacco companies, accusing them of a decades-long scheme to deceive the public about the health risks of smoking. In 2006, a federal court found the companies liable under racketeering laws and ordered them to issue corrective statements to consumers.

Peregrine Systems — Bankruptcy (2002)

Peregrine Systems, a California-based provider of IT asset management and enterprise software, filed bankruptcy after admitting it had overstated roughly $100 million in revenue.

Hewlett-Packard — CEO Firing (2011)

Léo Apotheker was ousted as CEO of Hewlett-Packard after less than a year on the job, following a steep drop in the company’s stock and a chaotic strategic shift that included abandoning its webOS devices and proposing a spin-off of its PC business. He was replaced by former eBay CEO Meg Whitman.

Sept. 23

Long-Term Capital Management — Bailout (1998)

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York brokered a $3.6 billion private bailout of Long-Term Capital Management, the highly leveraged hedge fund whose massive losses threatened to destabilize global financial markets. A consortium of major Wall Street firms stepped in to prevent a disorderly collapse.

Blockbuster — Bankruptcy (2010)

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Blockbuster filed bankruptcy, weighed down by nearly $1 billion in debt after years of struggling to compete with Netflix and kiosk rival Redbox.

Volkswagen — CEO Resignation (2015)

Martin Winterkorn resigned as CEO of Volkswagen amid the Dieselgate emissions scandal, taking responsibility for the crisis while denying personal wrongdoing. Read More: Slipping Away From Prosecutors (Business Blunders)

Sept. 24

U.S. Gold Market — Collapse (1869)

The U.S. gold market collapsed in the Black Friday panic after speculators tried to corner the market. President Ulysses S. Grant ordered the Treasury to sell gold, breaking the scheme and sending prices tumbling. The scandal exposed how easily political access and financial manipulation could collide.

WeWork — CEO Resignation (2019)

Adam Neumann stepped down as CEO of WeWork, a company that leased office space long-term and rented it out short-term, following a failed IPO and backlash over governance and mounting losses. The business model left it exposed to huge fixed costs with no clear path to profit, unraveling its sky-high valuation. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Sept. 25

Amazon — Settlement (2025)

The Federal Trade Commission announced a $2.5 billion settlement with Amazon over allegations it used deceptive “dark patterns” to enroll millions of consumers in Prime subscriptions and made it difficult to cancel. The deal included a $1 billion civil penalty and $1.5 billion in refunds to affected customers.

Sept. 26

Washington Mutual — Bankruptcy (2008)

Washington Mutual filed bankruptcy, one day after regulators seized its banking subsidiary in the largest bank failure in U.S. history. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation sold the banking operations to JPMorgan Chase as a financial crisis escalated.

Sept. 27

Freddie Mac — Settlement (2007)

Four former Freddie Mac executives settled civil charges tied to the mortgage giant’s accounting scandal, agreeing to pay a combined $515,000 in civil fines and $275,548 in restitution. The agency had accused them of negligent conduct in a scheme that smoothed earnings and misled investors during the housing boom. Additionally, Freddie Mac agreed to a $50 million settlement.

Sept. 28

Excite@Home — Bankruptcy (2001)

Excite@Home, once a high-flying broadband and web portal venture valued in the billions, filed bankruptcy as the dot-com bubble unraveled. Saddled with debt and shrinking ad revenue, the company became one of the era’s most visible tech flameouts.

Bank of America — Settlement (2012)

Bank of America agreed to pay $2.43 billion to settle a class-action lawsuit tied to its acquisition of Merrill Lynch during the financial crisis. Shareholders alleged the bank misled investors about Merrill’s mounting losses and bonus payouts ahead of the merger.

Sept. 29

Tesla — Settlement (2018)

Elon Musk and Tesla settled civil fraud charges over misleading tweets claiming he had “funding secured” to take the automaker private. The posts triggered sharp market swings and drew allegations that investors had been misled.

Charlie Javice — Fraud Sentencing (2025)

Charlie Javice, founder of student aid startup Frank, was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for defrauding JPMorgan Chase in a $175 million sale. Prosecutors said she fabricated millions of fake customer accounts to make the company appear far larger than it was. Read More: JPMorgan Chumps (Business Blunders)

JPMorgan Chase — Criminal Settlement (2020)

JPMorgan Chase agreed to pay $920 million to resolve criminal charges tied to schemes that manipulated precious metals and Treasury markets. Traders used “spoofing” tactics to distort prices, marking one of the largest penalties ever for market manipulation. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Sept. 30

Adelphia Communications — Fraud Conviction (2004)

On this day in 2021, John Rigas, founder of Adelphia Communications, died at 96. Rigas had been convicted in one of the largest corporate frauds of the early 2000s, after using company funds to cover billions in hidden family debt. Read More: John Rigas – Adelphia Communications (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

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Oct. 1

BP — CEO Resignation (2010)

Tony Hayward stepped down as CEO of BP, months after the Deepwater Horizon disaster triggered one of the worst oil spills in history. His tenure unraveled amid public backlash and mounting financial and environmental damage. Read More: CEOs Say The Dumbest Things (Blunder Lists)

Oct. 2

Ian Freeman — Fraud Sentencing (2023)

Ian Freeman was sentenced to eight years in prison for operating a bitcoin-based money-laundering scheme that processed more than $10 million from romance scams and other online frauds targeting vulnerable victims.

National Public Data — Bankruptcy (2024)

National Public Data filed bankruptcy after a massive data breach exposed the personal information of millions. The company, which specialized in background checks and data aggregation, faced mounting lawsuits and regulatory scrutiny following the security failure.

Oct. 3

U.S. Government — Banking Bailout (2008)

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George W. Bush signed a $700 billion financial rescue package into law, creating the Troubled Asset Relief Program to stabilize a collapsing banking system. The unprecedented bailout came as the financial crisis threatened to bring down major institutions.

Oct. 4

Hewlett-Packard — Criminal Charges (2006)

California’s attorney general filed criminal charges against Patricia Dunn, then-chair of Hewlett-Packard, and others over the company’s “pretexting” scandal, which involved illegally obtaining phone records to identify boardroom leaks. The case later unraveled, with charges against Dunn dismissed in 2007 after a co-defendant’s plea deal.

Equifax — Congressional Testimony (2017)

Richard Smith, former CEO of Equifax, appeared before Congress to apologize for a data breach that exposed the personal information of 148 million Americans,. nearly half the population in the U.S. Despite the scale of the failure, Smith retired with compensation valued in the tens of millions, fueling outrage over accountability.

Oct. 5

Mattress Firm — Bankruptcy (2018)

Mattress Firm filed bankruptcy after years of rapid expansion left it with too many stores and too much debt. The company said it would close hundreds of underperforming locations, with plans to shutter up to 700 stores. Read More: A CEO Who Made His Own Bed (Business Blunders)

Oct. 6

Countrywide Financial — Regulatory Settlement (2008)

On this day in 2008, California Attorney General Edmund Brown announced an $8.68 billion multi-state settlement with Countrywide Financial over deceptive and predatory mortgage lending during the housing boom. The deal aimed to provide relief to hundreds of thousands of struggling borrowers as the financial crisis intensified.

Oct. 7

Ruby Tuesday — Bankruptcy (2020)

Ruby Tuesday filed bankruptcy, citing the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on its dine-in business. The company announced plans to permanently close 185 restaurants as it attempted to restructure.

Calvin Darden Jr. — Fraud Conviction (2024)

A federal jury convicted Calvin Darden Jr. for defrauding retired NBA players Dwight Howard and Chandler Parsons out of approximately $8 million.

Oct. 8

Martha Stewart — Prison Sentence (2004)

Martha Stewart reported to a federal prison camp in West Virginia to begin a five-month sentence tied to the ImClone trading scandal. She had been convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and making false statements to investigators. Read More: Martha Stewart – Martha Stewart Living (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Bank of America — Regulatory Settlement (2008)

Bank of America agreed in principle to a settlement over the auction-rate securities mess, part of the wave of fallout from Wall Street selling supposedly safe investments that later froze up.

SAExploration — Accounting Fraud Charges (2020)

Regulators charged SAExploration Holdings and four former executives in a $100 million accounting fraud case, alleging they falsely inflated revenue and concealed the theft of millions from the seismic data company. The SEC said the company had already restated its financials and declared bankruptcy earlier that year.

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Oct. 9

Magic Mushrooms – Regulatory Charges (2024)

Regulators charged a tiny company, Minerco, and promoters Robert “Bobby” Shumake and Julius Jenge in an $8 million, “magic mushroom,” pump-and-dump scheme. The defendants allegedly took control of the dormant stock and hyped it as a psychedelic mushroom venture, falsely touting billion-dollar valuations and fake partnership to lure investors before dumping shares for millions in profits. Read More: Magic Mushroom Pump-And -Dump (Business Blunders)

Stock Promoters – Regulatory Charges (2024)

Regulators charged three so-called “market makers” and nine individuals in a sweeping crackdown on crypto market manipulation. The Securities and Exchange Commission said promoters hired firms like ZM Quant, Gotbit, and CLS Global to generate fake trading activity using bots and wash trades to create the illusion of demand and lure retail investors into rigged markets.

Oct. 10

TD Bank — Guilty Plea (2024)

On this day in 2024, TD Bank pleaded guilty to criminal charges as part of a $1.8 billion resolution with U.S. authorities over anti-money-laundering failures and a conspiracy to facilitate illicit transactions.

Oct. 11

Billy McFarland — Fraud Sentencing (2018)

Billy McFarland was sentenced to six years in prison for defrauding investors and customers in the failed Fyre Festival, a luxury music event that collapsed into chaos. Read More: Billy McFarland – Fyre Festival (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Oct. 12

Polaroid — Bankruptcy (2001)

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Polaroid filed bankruptcy, overwhelmed by debt and the rapid shift to digital photography. A successor company would file for bankruptcy again in 2008, underscoring the brand’s struggle to adapt.

Wells Fargo — CEO Resignation (2016)

John Stumpf resigned as chairman and CEO of Wells Fargo following a scandal in which employees created millions of unauthorized customer accounts to meet aggressive sales targets. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Oct. 13

UAL Corp. — Deal Collapse (1989)

A proposed $6.75 billion leveraged buyout of UAL Corp. collapsed after financing fell through, derailing an ambitious employee-led takeover. The news triggered a sharp market selloff, known as the “mini-crash,” with the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunging nearly 7%.

Raj Rajaratnam — Fraud Sentencing (2011)

Raj Rajaratnam was sentenced to 11 years in prison for insider trading and conspiracy, capping one of the most sweeping Wall Street investigations in years. He was also ordered to forfeit more than $150 million. Read More: Raj Rajaratnam – Galleon Group (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Oct. 14

United Copper — Market Manipulation (1907)

Speculator F. Augustus Heinze launched a failed attempt to corner shares of United Copper Co, a reckless bet that quickly unraveled and helped ignite the Panic of 1907.

TARP – Government bailout (2008)

On this day in he U.S. Treasury, the Federal Reserve, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced plans to inject capital into major banks by taking equity stakes under the Troubled Asset Relief Program, a dramatic move to stabilize the financial system during the crisis.

Olympus — CEO Ouster (2011)

Olympus Corp. ousted CEO Michael Woodford after he questioned suspicious deals, a move that exposed a massive accounting scandal that had hidden losses for years. Woodford was later vindicated as the fraud came to light and executives were convicted.

Trevor Milton — Fraud Conviction (2022)

Trevor Milton, founder of Nikola Corp. was convicted of fraud for misleading investors about the company’s technology and business progress. He was later sentenced to four years in prison, then pardoned by Donald Trump.

Oct. 15

Nortel — Regulatory Settlement (2007)

Nortel Networks Corp. agreed to pay a $35 million civil penalty to settle Securities and Exchange Commission charges over fraudulent accounting practices that misstated its financial results.

Sears Holdings — Bankruptcy (2018)

Sears Holdings, parent of Sears and Kmart, filed bankruptcy, marking the collapse of an iconic retail empire. The filing also ended the long tenure of CEO Eddie Lampert, whose strategy had failed to reverse years of decline.

Oct. 16

Raytheon — Deferred Prosecution (2024)

Raytheon Co. agreed to a $950 million resolution, including a deferred prosecution agreement, over bribery, pricing fraud, and export control violations. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Citigroup — CEO Resignation (2012)

Vikram Pandit stepped down as CEO of Citigroup in a sudden exit that highlighted ongoing struggles and internal friction in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.

Oct. 17

Refco — Bankruptcy (2005)

On this day in 2005, Refco filed bankruptcy just days after revealing that its CEO had concealed hundreds of millions of dollars in bad debt. The disclosure triggered a rapid collapse at what had been one of the largest brokerage firms in the U.S.

ACI Worldwide — Regulatory Settlement (2023)

A coalition of state attorneys general announced a $10 million settlement with ACI Worldwide over a testing error that triggered more than $2 billion in unauthorized or attempted withdrawals from consumer mortgage accounts.

Oct. 18

Lafarge — Guilty Plea (2022)

French building materials giant Lafarge pleaded guilty to providing support to terrorist groups, including ISIS, through its Syrian subsidiary. The company agreed to pay roughly $778 million in penalties, marking the first-ever U.S. criminal prosecution of a company for providing material support to designated terrorist organizations.

Conn’s — CEO Resignation (2022)

Conn’sCEO Chandra Holt resigned after just over a year in the role as the furniture and electronics retailer struggled with declining sales in a weakening consumer environment.

CVS Health — CEO Resignation (2024)

CVS Health CEO Karen Lynch stepped down, following a period of financial underperformance, a 19% drop in share price that year, and disappointing quarterly earnings. She failed to navigate a drastically changed landscape for all pharmacies with online competition. At the time, she was one of only 46 female CEOs in among S&P 500 companies.

Oct. 19

John DeLorean — Criminal Charges (1982)

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John Z. DeLorean, founder of DeLorean Motor Co., was arrested in an FBI sting and charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine. The high-profile case later collapsed when he was acquitted on grounds of entrapment.

Global Markets — Market Crash (1987)

Global stock markets crashed in a single day of panic known as Black Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunging 22.6%, the largest one-day percentage drop in its history.

Citigroup — Regulatory Settlement (2011)

Citigroup agreed to pay $285 million to settle charges that it misled investors about a $1 billion mortgage-linked Collateralized Debt Obligation or CDO. The bank structured a deal that bet against its own clients, highlighting the conflicts at the heart of the financial crisis.

Deutsche Bank — Operational Error (2015)

Reports revealed that Deutsche Bank had mistakenly transferred $6 billion to a U.S. hedge fund in a “fat finger” error earlier in the year, one of the largest known accidental payments in banking history. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Oct. 20

House Un-American Committee – Blacklisting (1947)

The House Un-American Activities Committee opened hearings in Hollywood, launching the Red Scare. What followed was a blacklist that sidelined talent and transformed the economics of the film industry.

Fossil Group — Bankruptcy (2025)

Fossil Group filed bankruptcy in the U.S. to recognize a UK restructuring plan as the watchmaker struggled with declining sales and mounting pressure from smartwatch competitors.

Oct. 21

Quibi — Shutdown (2020)

Quibi announced it would shut down just six months after its launch, burning through nearly $2 billion in funding as its short-form mobile video model failed to attract enough users. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Purdue Pharma — Guilty Plea (2020)

The Department of Justice announced a global resolution of criminal and civil investigations into Purdue Pharma, including an $8.3 billion settlement tied to its role in the opioid crisis. The company agreed to plead guilty to felony charges and be dissolved, with its assets redirected to fund addiction treatment and public health efforts.

Oct. 22

Knickerbocker Trust — Collapse (1907)

The Knickerbocker Trust suspended operations after a wave of withdrawals, deepening the Panic of 1907 and shaking confidence across New York’s financial system.

Wachovia — Loss Disclosure (2008)

Wachovia reported a staggering $24 billion quarterly loss – the largest ever for a U.S. bank at the time – as the financial crisis deepened. The collapse accelerated its sale to Wells Fargo at a fraction of its former value.

Goldman Sachs — Regulatory Settlement (2020)

Goldman Sachs agreed to pay more than $2.9 billion to resolve charges tied to its role in raising money for a Malaysian government investment fund that was looted by insiders. Bankers helped arrange bond deals while ignoring red flags that proceeds were being diverted for bribes, luxury purchases, and personal enrichment.

Abercrombie & Fitch — Criminal Charges (2024)

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Michael Jeffries, former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, was indicted on sex trafficking charges tied to an alleged scheme involving young men. Read More: CEOs Gone Wild (Business Blunders)

Oct. 23

Jeffrey Skilling — Fraud Sentencing (2006)

On this day in 2006, Jeffrey Skilling, former CEO of Enron, was sentenced to 24 years and four months in prison for fraud and conspiracy tied to the company’s collapse. Read More: Jeffrey Skilling – Enron (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Oct. 24

J.P. Morgan — Private Bailout (1907)

As markets plunged during the Panic of 1907, financier J. P. Morgan organized a rescue of major banks, acting as a de facto central banker to stem the panic. His intervention helped stabilize the financial system and prevent a broader collapse.

Rajat Gupta — Fraud Sentencing (2012)

Rajat Gupta, former global head of McKinsey & Company and a board member of major corporations, was sentenced to two years in prison and fined $5 million for leaking confidential boardroom information to Raj Rajaratnam, the hedge fund manager behind a vast insider trading network. Read More: Rajat Gupta – Goldman Sachs (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Bank of America — Fraud Lawsuit (2012)

The Justice Department sued Bank of America over its “Hustle” program, accusing the bank of pushing through faulty mortgages and dumping the risk onto Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It ended in a record $17 billion settlement.

Oct. 25

BP — Criminal Settlement (2007)

BP agreed to pay about $373 million to resolve criminal charges tied to a deadly refinery explosion in Texas, pipeline leaks in Alaska, and a scheme to manipulate propane markets. The case exposed systemic failures in safety, oversight, and compliance. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

MF Global — Collapse (2011)

MF Global, run by former New Jersey governor Jon Corzine, disclosed a $191.6 million quarterly loss and $6.3 billion in exposure to European sovereign debt, triggering credit downgrades that accelerated a fatal liquidity crisis. The firm filled bankruptcy less than a week later.

Oct. 26

RBS Securities — Criminal Settlement (2017)

RBS Securities agreed to pay $35 million to resolve criminal charges over a scheme to defraud its customers in trades of residential mortgage-backed securities and collateralized loan obligations between 2008 and 2013, misconduct tied to the practices that fueled the financial crisis.

Oct. 27

Global Markets — Major Selloff (1997)

The Dow Jones Industrial Average began a then-record two day plunge as fears from the Asian financial crisis rattled global markets. The selloff triggered trading halts, marking one of the first major tests of market circuit breakers.

Twitter — Acquisition (2022)

Elon Musk completed his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter and immediately fired top executives, capping months of legal battles with an abrupt leadership purge. The deal was widely viewed as a blunder after Musk overpaid, took on heavy debt, and triggered advertiser pullbacks and revenue declines. Read More: Musk Mouth (Business Blunders)

Oct. 28

Volkswagen — Financial Loss (2015)

Volkswagen reported its first quarterly loss in more than 15 years, posting a €1.67 billion loss after setting aside €6.7 billion to cover costs from its diesel emissions cheating scandal. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Oct. 29

Wall Street — Market Crash (1929)

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U.S. markets collapsed in a historic selloff known as Black Tuesday, the day after Black Monday, as panic selling overwhelmed the market and helped usher in the Great Depression.

Oct. 30

Merrill Lynch — CEO Ouster (2007)

Stan O’Neal was forced out as CEO of Merrill Lynch after massive losses on subprime mortgage bets. Risky bets on toxic assets wiped out billions and nearly toppled one of Wall Street’s most powerful firms.

Oct. 31

Andrew Fastow — Criminal Indictment (2002)

A federal grand jury indicted Andrew Fastow, former chief financial officer of Enron, on 78 counts including wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy tied to the company’s accounting schemes.

MF Global — Bankruptcy (2011)

MF Global, run by former New Jersey governor Jon Corzine, filed bankruptcy after risky bets on European sovereign debt triggered a liquidity crisis. More than $1 billion in customer funds went missing.

Samsung Electronics — Leadership Shakeup (2017)

On this day in 2017, Samsung Electronics announced a sweeping leadership shakeup, replacing the heads of its mobile, appliance, and semiconductor divisions ito quell a crisis triggered by the conviction of CEO Lee Jae-yong on bribery and embezzlement charges.

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< OCTOBER

Nov. 1

Iridium — Collapse (1998)

Motorola-backed Iridium launched a $5 billion satellite phone service, but bulky devices and high costs crushed demand. The company filed bankruptcy less than a year later, capping one of the most spectacular telecom flops of the 1990s.

CIT Group — Bankruptcy (2009)

CIT Group filed bankruptcy after a liquidity crisis cut off funding to one of the nation’s largest small-business lenders. The collapse marked one of the biggest bankruptcies of the financial crisis era and left thousands of businesses scrambling for credit.

Barclays — CEO Resignation (2021)

CEO Jes Staley resigned after U.K. regulators found his ties to Jeffrey Epstein were more extensive than disclosed.

Nov. 2

Trump Plaza Hotel — Bankruptcy (1992)

Donald Trumps’ Plaza Operating Partners filed bankruptcy after Donald Trump loaded the iconic Plaza Hotel with debt in a record-priced takeover. The hotel couldn’t generate enough cash to cover the financing, turning a trophy asset into a sinkhole.

Quaker Oats — Acquisition Blunder (1994)

On this day in 1994, Quaker Oats announced plans to acquire Snapple Beverage in a $1.7 billion deal that would become one of the most notorious brand misfires of the decade. Quaker overpaid and mishandled distribution, unloading Snapple just 27 months later at a steep loss. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Nov. 3

McDonald's — CEO Firing (2019)

McDonald’s fired its CEO Steve Easterbrook for engaging in a consensual relationship with an employee. The ouster ended his tenure atop one of the world’s largest restaurant chains and later led to a clawback of tens of millions in compensation. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Nov. 4

SAC Capital — Insider Trading Guilty Plea (2013)

SAC Capital Advisors agreed to plead guilty to insider trading and pay a record $1.8 billion penalty to resolve criminal charges brought by federal prosecutors. The case exposed widespread illegal trading inside one of Wall Street’s most successful hedge funds and forced it to shut down outside investor operations.

Nov. 5

Robert Maxwell — Fraud Scandal (1991)

Robert Maxwell, a British media baron, reputed intelligence asset, and father of Ghislaine Maxwell, was found dead after falling from his yacht near the Canary Islands. Within days, it emerged he had looted hundreds of millions from employee pension funds to prop up his crumbling empire. Read More: Robert Maxwell – Mirror Group Newspapers (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Nov. 6

IBM — Strategic Deal Blunder (1980)

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IBM adopted Microsoft’s operating system for its new personal computer while allowing Bill Gates to retain the rights to license it to others. The decision ceded control of the software business to a supplier that went on to become the most powerful company in tech. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

WeWork — Bankruptcy (2023)

WeWork filed bankruptcy after a failed internet public stock offering, massive losses, and a business model built on long-term leases for short-term tenants. Once valued at $47 billion, the company’s rapid rise and collapse became yet another cautionary tale of hype outpacing reality. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Nov. 7

Nicholas Mitsakos — Fraud Sentencing (2017)

Nicholas Mitsakos, chairman of the purported hedge fund Matrix Capital, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for conspiring to commit securities and wire fraud. Prosecutors said he misled investors about the fund’s strategy and performance.

Nov. 8

Olympus — Accounting Scandal (2011)

Olympus admitted it had concealed investment losses for years through a series of opaque acquisitions and advisory fees, confirming a massive accounting cover-up. The scheme, which was exposed after CEO Michael Woodford was abruptly fired for sounding the alarm, hid more than $1.7 billion in losses and became one of Japan’s biggest corporate frauds.

Blessings In No Time — Fraud Charges (2023)

Federal prosecutors charged LaShonda Moore and Marlon Moore for allegedly running the “Blessings In No Time” pyramid scheme, which authorities say defrauded thousands of victims of more than $10 million. Prosecutors said the scheme, promoted through church networks,” used cryptocurrency and recruitment-driven payouts to mask a classic fraud.

Nov. 9

Boston Chicken — IPO (1993)

Boston Chicken debuted on the Nasdaq, soaring about 140% on its first day as investors piled into one of the decade’s hottest restaurant initial public stock offerings. Rapid expansion and a flawed franchise financing model later unraveled, and the company filed for bankruptcy on Oct. 5, 1998.

Nov. 10

Refco — Fraud Charges (2005)

Federal prosecutors indicted Phillip Bennett, the former CEO of one of the world’s largest commodities and derivatives brokers, on fraud charges after he allegedly hid hundreds of millions in bad debts from investors. The $2.4. billion scheme collapsed just weeks after Refco’s initial public stock offerng, triggering one of the most stunning corporate implosions of the era. He was later sentenced to 16 years in prison.

Circuit City — Bankruptcy (2008)

Circuit City filed bankruptcy as falling sales and mounting losses overwhelmed the once-dominant electronics retailer. The filing marked the beginning of the end for a chain that would liquidate and shut down stores nationwide within months.

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Nov. 11

FTX — Collapse (2022)

FTX filed bankruptcy as a liquidity crisis exposed a massive shortfall in customer funds and ties to its affiliated trading firm, Alameda Research. The collapse wiped out billions and triggered fraud charges against founder Sam Bankman-Fried, marking one of the most dramatic failures in crypto history. Read More: Sam Bankman-Fried – FTX (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Nov. 12

Thomas Salzano — Fraud Sentencing (2024)

The former head of National Realty Investment Advisors, was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for orchestrating a $658 million Ponzi scheme and a tax evasion conspiracy. Prosecutors said Thomas Nicholas Salzano misused investor funds and fabricated performance to sustain the fraud. Read More: 15 Tales Of Lost Ponzi Riches (Blunder Lists)

Nov. 13

Kerr-McGee — Safety Scandal (1974)

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Karen Silkwood, a technician at Kerr-McGee and union activist, died in a mysterious car crash while en route to meet a reporter with documents showing safety violations at a nuclear facility. Her death, and evidence of plutonium contamination, sparked national outrage and became a landmark case highlighting corporate negligence and workers’ rights.

Nov. 14

Ivan Boesky — Insider Trading Charges (1986)

The Securities and Exchange Commission and federal prosecutors announced insider trading charges against arbitrageur Ivan Boesky, exposing a vast network of illegal trading on Wall Street. Boesky later agreed to pay a then-record $100 million penalty and cooperated with authorities, helping unravel one of the biggest insider trading scandals of the era. Read More: Ivan Boesky – Wall Street trader (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Microsoft — Product Failure (2006)

Microsoft launched the Zune media player in a bid to challenge the iPod from Apple. Late to the market and lacking a clear edge, the device failed to gain traction, becoming a costly reminder that even tech giants can miss cultural moments.

Qualcomm — Fraud Scheme (2023)

Karim Arabi, a former executive at Qualcomm, was sentenced to prison for orchestrating a $180 million fraud scheme. Prosecutors said he secretly directed a Qualcomm project to a company he controlled, then concealed his ownership to collect millions in payments. He was sentenced in 2025 to four years in prison.

Nov. 15

Kmart — Settlement (2005)

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Charles C. Conaway, former CEO of Kmart, agreed to pay $5.5 million to settle an Securities and Exchange Commission case alleging he misled investors about the company’s financial condition ahead of its bankruptcy.

Ticketmaster — System Collapse (2022)

Ticketmaster’s presale for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour collapsed under demand, locking out millions of fans and triggering a public backlash. Ticketmaster canceled the general sale days later, faced congressional scrutiny, and became the focus of federal antitrust investigations. Read More: Ticketbastard (Business Blunders)

Nov. 16

Hostess Brands — Liquidation (2012)

On this day in 2012, Hostess Brands, maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread, announced it would shut down and liquidate after a nationwide strike by the Bakery, Tobacco, Food Workers and Grain Millers International Union crippled operations. The collapse put more than 18,900 employees out of work and briefly wiped its iconic snacks from store shelves before the brands were later revived under new ownership.

Nov. 17

JPMorgan Chase — Settlement (2016)

JPMorgan Chase agreed to pay $72 million to U.S. regulators to settle charges that its Hong Kong investment banking unit ran a corrupt hiring scheme in China, offering jobs to relatives of government officials to win business. The case exposed how “princeling” hires became a conduit for bribery in global finance.

Wells Fargo — Executive Firing (2017)

Wells Fargo fired Franklin Codel, head of consumer lending, after he made inappropriate comments about a regulator. The dismissal came as the bank was already under intense scrutiny for misconduct scandals, underscoring a culture that continued to clash with oversight.

OpenAI — CEO Ouster (2023)

OpenAI’s board abruptly ousted CEO Sam Altman, citing a lack of candor in his communications. The move blindsided employees and key partner Microsoft, triggering a revolt inside the company and widespread backlash across the tech industry. Within five days, Altman was reinstated and the board members behind the decision were pushed out.

Nov. 18

Mario Biaggi — Bribery Sentencing (1988)

Mario Biaggi, a Democratic New York congressman, was sentenced to eight years in prison for his role in the Wedtech scandal, a bribery scheme in which the defense contractor used stock and political influence to win government contracts.

Elizabeth Holmes — Fraud Sentencing (2022)

Elizabeth Holmes, founder of Theranos, was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison for defrauding investors about the company’s blood-testing technology. Once valued at $9 billion, Theranos became one of Silicon Valley’s most infamous frauds. Read More: ElizabethHolmes – Theranos (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Nov. 19

Ford — Product Failure (1959)

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Ford discontinued the Edsel, ending one of the most infamous product failures in automotive history. Plagued by confusing branding, design misfires, and a weak market fit, the Edsel became a costly symbol of corporate overreach and marketing hubris. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Allied Crude — Fraud Scandal (1963)

Allied Crude Vegetable Oil Refining Corp. filed for bankruptcy after a massive fraud in which storage tanks supposedly filled with valuable vegetable oil were largely water. The “salad oil swindle” duped major lenders and traders, exposing glaring failures in basic verification. Read More: Tino De Angelis – Allied Crude Vegetable Oil (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Texaco — Legal Judgment (1985)

A Texas jury awarded Pennzoil a record $10.5 billion verdict against Texaco for interfering with its agreement to acquire Getty Oil. The judgement – one of the largest in U.S. history at the time – pushed Texaco into bankruptcy and became a landmark case in corporate dealmaking gone wrong.

JPMorgan Chase — Settlement (2013)

The Department of Justice announced a record $13 billion settlement with JPMorgan Chase – the largest settlement with a single entity in American history – over the packaging and sale of toxic mortgage-backed securities in the run-up to the financial crisis. The deal resolved federal and state civil claims tied to conduct at JPMorgan, as well as firms it acquired, including Bear Stearns and Washington Mutual, for misleading investors about the quality of underlying loans.

Nov. 20

Texaco — Industrial Disaster (1980)

A drilling rig operated by Texaco accidentally hit a salt mine beneath Louisiana’s Lake Peigneur, triggering a massive whirlpool that drained the freshwater lake and flooded the mine. The disaster ultimately reversed the lake’s flow and turned it into a saltwater body, one of the most dramatic industrial accidents of its kind.

Nissan Motor Co. — Executive Arrest (2018)

Carlos Ghosn, chairman of Nissan Motor Co. and a top executive at Renault, was arrested in Japan on charges of financial misconduct, triggering his swift removal from leadership roles. The scandal upended one of the auto industry’s most powerful alliances, and took a surreal turn when Ghosn later jumped bail and fled Japan, ultimately resurfacing in Lebanon after a clandestine escape. Read More: Back In The Box (Business Blunders)

November 21

Freddie Mac — Accounting Scandal (2003)

The government-sponsored mortgage giant, disclosed it had inflated earnings for 2001 by about $1 billion, marking a key moment in its escalating accounting scandal. Freddie Mac’s revelation exposed serious controls failures at one of the country’s most important housing finance institutions.

Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts — Bankruptcy (2004)

OTrump Hotels & Casino Resorts and subsidiaries filed bankruptcy in New Jersey, burdened by $1.8 billion in debt and declining casino revenues. The restructuring marked one of multiple bankruptcies tied to Donald Trump’s Atlantic City ventures.

Guitar Center — Bankruptcy (2020)

The largest musical instruments retailer in the US filed bankruptcy. Already struggling against $1.3B in debt and online competition before the pandemic, Guitar Center was unable to overcome the loss in revenue related to Covid-19-related store closures.

Nov. 22

Merck — Regulatory Settlement (2011)

Merck agreed to pay $950 million to resolve criminal and civil charges over the illegal marketing of its painkiller Vioxx. The case stemmed from efforts to promote the drug despite known safety risks, marking one of the largest pharmaceutical settlements of its time.

General Electric — Investor Settlement (2024)

General Electric agreed to pay $362.5 million to settle a shareholder class action alleging it misled investors about the strength of its power division. The case stemmed from disclosures that wiped out billions in market value and highlighted the risks of overly optimistic corporate forecasts.

Nov. 23

Tobacco Industry — Legal Settlement (1998)

The largest U.S. tobacco companies and 46 states entered into the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, imposing sweeping advertising restrictions and requiring more than $200 billion in payments over time. The deal marked a landmark reckoning for the industry’s deceptive marketing and health claims.

Citigroup — Government Bailout (2008)

The Treasury, Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced a rescue package for Citigroup, which included a $20 billion capital injection from the Treasury under the Troubled Asset Relief Program. The extraordinary intervention underscored the scale of the financial crisis and the risks posed by one of the world’s largest banks.

Nov. 24

Purdue Pharma — Guilty Plea (2020)

Purdue Pharma pleaded guilty to fraud and kickback conspiracies related to its marketing of opioid painkillers. Federal prosecutors accused the company of misleading regulators and fueling the opioid crisis, resulting in billions in penalties and one of the most consequential corporate resolutions in U.S. history.

CyberNET Engineering — Fraud Collapse (2004)

Barton H. Watson, founder of CyberNET Engineering, took his own life as federal investigators closed in on a fraud scheme that left the company with nearly $100 million in debt. The case exposed financial misconduct inside a government contractor and ended in a sudden, tragic collapse.

Nov. 25

Macy’s — Internal Control Failure (2024)

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Macy’s revealed that an internal investigation uncovered $132 million to $154 million in delivery expenses that had been intentionally concealed by a single employee. The disclosure exposed a significant breakdown in internal controls at one of the country’s largest retailers. Read More: Big Blunders Come In Small Packages (Business Blunders)

Nov. 26

Bank of America — Acquisition Fallout (2008)

The Federal Reserve approved Bank of America’s acquisition of Merrill Lynch, a crisis-era deal that soon saddled the bank with massive losses and government support.

Nov. 27

Silverado Savings & Loan — Fraud Sentencing (1992)

W. James Metz, former owner of Silverado Savings and Loan, was sentenced toprison for looting the institution during the savings and loan crisis. He only had to serve six months. The case highlighted the excesses and fraud that helped fuel one of the costliest banking collapses in U.S. history. Read More: Michael Wise – Silverado Savings & Loan (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

GigaTrust — Bankruptcy (2019)

GigaTrust filed bankruptcy after financial problems tied to a $50 million fraud scheme involving its former chief financial officer. Its CFO admitted diverting company funds and falsifying records to conceal the theft. The collapse showed how internal misconduct can sink even companies built around security.

Nov. 28

Chiquita Brands International filed bankruptcy as part of a pre-arranged plan to restructure more than $700 million in debt. The company’s financial strain was driven in part by European Union trade restrictions that eroded its market share. It emerged from bankruptcy less than four months later.

Nov. 29

AMR Corp. — Bankruptcy (2011)

The parent of American Airlines, filed bankruptcy protection as rising costs and intense competition battered the carrier. AMR’s restructuring marked a major turning point for one of the nation’s largest airlines.

NBC News — Anchor Firing (2017)

NBC News fired longtime anchor Matt Lauer following a complaint of sexual misconduct, abruptly ending one of the most prominent careers in broadcast journalism.

Nov. 30

World Trade Organization — Summit Collapse (1999)

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A massive anti-globalization protests disrupted the World Trade Organization ministerial meeting in Seattle, forcing the cancellation of opening ceremonies and halting negotiations. The unrest exposed a growing backlash against globalization.

Reverse Mortgage Investment Trust — Bankruptcy (2022)

Reverse Mortgage Investment Trust filed bankruptcy after extreme volatility in the fixed-income and mortgage markets upended its business. The company listed roughly $10 billion in assets and liabilities, underscoring how rapidly rising interest rates can destabilize highly leveraged mortgage firms.

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Dec. 1

Better.com — Mass Layoff Backlash (2021)

CEO Vishal Garg fired 900 employees in a three-minute Zoom call, telling them, “If you’re on this call, you are part of the unlucky group.” The abrupt, impersonal move, just weeks before Christmas, sparked widespread outrage and became a case study in how not to handle mass layoffs.

Dec. 2

Barings Bank — Sentencing (1995)

Nick Leeson was sentenced in Singapore to six and a half years in prison for unauthorized trading that led to the collapse of Barings Bank. His hidden losses of more than $1 billion wiped out the 233-year-old institution in one of the most infamous trading scandals in history. Read More: Nick Leeson – Barings Bank (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Enron — Bankruptcy Filing (2001)

The energy giant filed bankruptcy after an accounting scandal revealed billions in hidden debt and inflated profits. The collapse of what had been one of America’s largest companies becoming a defining corporate fraud of its era. Read More: Enron Was A Parody Of Itself (Business Blunders)

Alex Jones — Bankruptcy Filing (2022)

Alex Jones filed personal bankruptcy after s court ordered him to pay r$1.5 billion in damages for defaming families of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. The filing followed one of the largest defamation judgments in U.S. history.

Dec. 3

Union Carbide — Industrial Disaster (1984)

A toxic gas leak at a pesticide plant in Bhopal killed thousands and injured hundreds of thousands, becoming one of the worst industrial catastrophes in history.

Dec. 4

Pan Am — Shutdown (1991)

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Pan American World Airways ceased operations after years of losses and a failed attempt to reorganize in bankruptcy. Once a symbol of global air travel, Pan Am collapsed under debt, rising competition, and a changing industry it couldn’t navigate.

UnitedHealthcare — Targeted Killing (2024)

CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot on a Midtown Manhattan street outside the New York Hilton Midtown, just before an investor event, shocking the business world. Read More: The Killionaire (Business Blunders)

Dec. 5

AOL Time Warner — CEO Resignation (2001)

OGerald Levin said he would step down as CEO of AOL Time Warner as the fallout from the disastrous merger mounted. One of the most hyped deals in corporate history quickly became one of its worst.

Dec. 6

Eastman Kodak — Missed Opportunity (1978)

Kodak patented early digital imaging technologuy based on a 1975 prototype digital camera developed by engineer Steven Sasson. But it failed to capitalize on the technology. Read More: The Biggest Business Blunders Of All Time (Blunder Lists)

Fannie Mae — Earnings Restatement (2006)

On this day in 2006, Fannie Mae announced it would restate its earnings by $6.3 billion to correct accounting errors dating back to 2001, capping a massive accounting scandal at the mortgage giant, for which had earlier paid $400 million to settle. The restatement exposed serious control failures at a federally chartered pillar of the housing finance system.

Trump Organization — Criminal Conviction (2022)

The company was convicted of tax fraud, conspiracy, and falsifying business records in a scheme to evade taxes on executive compensation. In a related case, the company’s longtime CFO Allen Weisselberg later served time in prison for tax offenses tied to the scheme.

Dec. 7

Cendant — Fraud Settlement (1999)

The company agreed to a $3.18 billion settlement to resolve a securities fraud class action stemming from a massive accounting scandal that inflated earnings for years. Former Chairman Walter Forbes and CEO E. Kirk Shelton was later sent to prison. The the settlement made the Guinness World Records as the largest class action settlement.

Dec. 8

Tribune Co. — Bankruptcy Filing (2008)

Tribune Co., publisher of the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times, filed bankruptcy under a heavy debt load from a leveraged buyout led by Sam Zell. The collapse became a cautionary tale of excessive leverage colliding with a declining newspaper industry.

Dec. 9

Silverado Savings & Loan — Regulatory Seizure (1988)

Federal regulators seized Silverado Savings and Loan, declaring the Denver-based institution insolvent in one of the most prominent failures of the savings and loan crisis. The collapse, which drew scrutiny over the role of director Neil Bush, son of President George H.W. Bush, became a symbol of excess and mismanagement in the era. Read More: Michael Wise – Silverado Savings & Loan (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Lululemon — Chairman Resignation (2013)

Chip Wilson resigned as chairman of Lululemon Athletica amid backlash over controversial comments about women’s bodies and the company’s product issues. The episode underscored how reputational missteps at the top can damage a premium consumer brand.

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Dec. 10

Bernard Madoff — Fraud Confession (2008)

Bernie Madoff confessed to his sons that his investment business was “one big lie,” revealing what would become one of the largest Ponzi schemes in history. The admission set off the chain of events that led to his arrest the following day and exposed tens of billions in losses. Read More: Bernie Madoff – Madoff Securities (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Nicor — Fraud Convictions (2003)

Three Nicor executives pleaded guilty to fraud charges for manipulating the Illinois-based natural gas utility company’s earnings through a sham insurance arrangement. The scheme masked financial performance and misled investors, exposing governance failures at a regulated energy provider.

Dec. 11

Bank of United States — Bank Failure (1930)

The Bank of United States failed, marking one of the largest bank collapses of the Great Depression. The failure helped trigger widespread panic and bank runs, deepening the financial crisis and exposing weaknesses in the banking system.

Dec. 12

Lincoln Savings & Loan — Indictment (1991)

Charles Keating was charged for his role in the collapse of Lincoln Savings and Loan, one of the most notorious failures of the savings and loan crisis. The case exposed widespread fraud and political influence in the industry. Read More: Charles Keating – Lincoln Savings & Loan (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Dec. 13

McKinsey — Deferred Prosecution Agreement (2024)

McKinsey & Co. agreed to a $650 million resolution and entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the Department of Justice over its work advising Purdue Pharma on opioid sales. The case tied one of the world’s most prominent consulting firms to the broader fallout from the opioid crisis. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Dec. 14

ZZZZ Best — Fraud Conviction (1988)

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Barry Minkow was convicted of fraud for orchestrating a massive scheme at ZZZZ Best, a carpet cleaning business he falsely portrayed as a highly profitable enterprise. The company’s revenues were largely fabricated, making it one of the most infamous frauds of the 1980s. Read More: Barry Minkow – ZZZZ Best (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Dec. 15

America Online — Deferred Prosecution Agreement (2004)

America Online struck a deferred prosecution agreement and agreed to pay $210 million after being charged with aiding and abetting securities fraud tied to its deal with PurchasePro.com. When the deal failed to produce real business, AOL bought products it didn’t need to help PurchasePro hit revenue targets The company avoided prosecution but agreed to oversight, and cooperated as multiple PurchasePro executives pleaded guilty.

Dec. 16

McKesson & Robbins — Accounting Fraud Scandal (1938)

Philip Musica, who operated under the alias F. Donald Coster, took his own life as federal agents arrived to arrest him for a massive accounting fraud at McKesson & Robbins. The scandal, which involved fictitious assets and inflated revenues, became a landmark case that led to major reforms in auditing and corporate disclosure.

Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac — Fraud Charges Filed (2011)

Regulators filed civil fraud charges against former executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, alleging they misled investors about exposure to subprime mortgage risk. The case, which included former Fannie Mae CEO Daniel Mudd, targeted conduct at the heart of the housing crisis. But most charges were later dismissed, with no jail time and minimal consequences.

Ozy Media — Sentencing (2024)

Carlos Watson, founder of Ozy Media, was sentenced for fraud related to misleading investors about the company’s performance. The case marked the collapse of a once high-profile media startup, though Watson was later pardoned. Read More: Carlos Watson – Ozy Media (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Dec. 17

DrKoop.com — Shutdown (2001)

DrKoop.com, the online health venture founded by former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, announced it would shut down operations after burning through cash and failing to build a sustainable business. The closure became another casualty of the dot-com bust.

Conseco — Bankruptcy Filing (2002)

Conseco, a fast-growing insurer and lender built through aggressive acquisitions, filed bankruptcy after mounting debt and a troubled expansion strategy overwhelmed the company. At the time, it was one of the largest corporate bankruptcies in U.S. history.

Dec. 18

Nikola — Sentencing (2023)

Trevor Milton, founder of electric truck maker Nikola, was sentenced to four years in prison for defrauding investors about the company’s technology. The case marked a major reckoning in the era of hype-driven electric vehicle startups. President Donald Trump pardoned him in March 2025.

Dec. 19

Honeywell UOP — Bribery Scheme (2022)

Honeywell UOP was ordered to pay more than $160 million after admitting to a foreign bribery scheme tied to a massive oil refinery contract in Brazil. The U.S. subsidiary of Honeywell admitted it conspired to pay roughly $4 million in bribes to a high-ranking executive at Brazil’s state-owned oil company, Petrobras, to secure a lucrative $425 million project.

Dec. 20

Ford — Settlement (2002)

Ford Motor Co. agreed to pay $51.5 million to settle claims with state attorneys general over defective Firestone tires linked to rollovers in its SUVs. The settlement marked another chapter in a deadly safety crisis that damaged one of the auto industry’s most iconic partnerships.

Archer Daniels Midland — Guilty Plea (2013)

An Archer Daniels Midland subsidiary pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and agreed to pay $54 million. The agricultural giant admitted it paid bribes to Ukrainian officials to secure business. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

Volkswagen — Settlement (2016)

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Volkswagen announced a settlement of about $1 billion to fix or buy back 3.0-liter diesel vehicles as part of the fallout from its emissions cheating scandal. The agreement added to mounting penalties tied to one of the largest automotive frauds in history. Read More: The Outrageous Acts Of Criminally Charged Corporations (Blunder Lists)

KEMET — CEO Resignation (2018)

Per-Olof Loof resigned as CEO of electronics company KEMET Corp. following a consensual relationship with an employee, a violation of company policy. Read More: Lost In Love (Blunder Lists)

Dec. 21

Excelsior-Henderson — Bankruptcy Filing (1999)

Excelsior-Henderson Motorcycle Manufacturing filed bankruptcy after struggling to scale production and meet demand for its high-end bikes. The failure underscored the challenges of reviving a historic brand in a competitive market.

NatWest — Criminal Conviction (2021)

NatWest Markets pleaded guilty to criminal charges of wire fraud and securities fraud charges stemming from unlawful trading in U.S. Treasury markets. The firm was ordered to pay $35 million in fines, forfeiture, and restitution.

Dec. 22

Madoff-Linked Fund — Investor Suicide (2008)

Thierry Magon de la Villehuchet, a hedge-fund founder heavily exposed to Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, died by suicide after losing about $1.5 billion and facing mounting pressure from investors. The episode underscored the devastating personal and financial toll of one of the largest frauds in history.

Container Store — Bankruptcy Filing (2024)

The Container Store filed bankruptcy, still overburdened with debt from a private equity buyout in 2007. It had been one of the hottest IPO stocks in 2013.

Dec. 23

Inter-American Insurance — Liquidation (1991)

Regulators placed Inter-American Insurance Co. of Illinois rd into liquidation, marking the collapse of the Chicago-based insurer. The failure underscored vulnerabilities in the insurance sector during a period of financial stress.

Dec. 24

WPPSS — Settlement (1988)

A $753 million settlement was reached in lawsuits stemming from the default of the Washington Public Power Supply System, known as WPPSS. The deal was part of a broader effort to resolve claims from the 1983 collapse of its nuclear power projects, the largest municipal bond failure in U.S. history at the time.

Parmalat — Bankruptcy Filing (2003)

On this day in 2003, Parmalat filed bankruptcy after the discovery of a multibillion-euro hole in its accounts. The collapse of the once-mighty dairy giant became one of Europe’s largest corporate fraud scandals.

Dec. 25

Santander UK — System Failure (2021)

Santander UK accidentally sent £130 million to 75,000 accounts after duplicating payments, then spent weeks trying to claw it back from customers who suddenly found themselves richer overnight.

Nissan — Executive Resignation (2019)

Nissan said senior executive Jun Seki would resign after being passed over for CEO despite being a leading internal candidate, as the board opted for a leadership reset following the Carlos Ghosn scandal. Read More: Back In The Box (Business Blunders)

Dec. 26

Soviet Union — State Dissolution (1991)

The Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union voted to dissolve the USSR, setting off a rushed privatization frenzy that handed vast state assets to a new class of oligarchs.

Office of Price Administration — Wartime Rationing (1941)

The Office of Price Administration capped Americans at five automobile tires, an early rationing move that underscored how quickly wartime shortages were reshaping the U.S. economy.

Dec. 27

Parmalat — Arrest (2003)

Italian authorities arrested Calisto Tanzi, founder of Parmalat, on suspicion of fraud following the company’s collapse. The scandal revealed a multibillion-euro hole in Parmalat’s accounts and became one of Europe’s largest corporate fraud cases. Tanzi was later sentenced to 18 years in prison.

Southwest Airlines — System Failure (2022)

Southwest Airlines’s holiday meltdown peaked as thousands of flights were canceled in a single day, exposing a catastrophic breakdown in its crew scheduling system. What began as a winter storm spiraled into a tech failure that stranded passengers nationwide. More than 16,000 flights were canceled, costing over $800 million and triggering federal scrutiny. It was later hit with a $140 million penalty for the blunder.

Dec. 28

Montgomery Ward — Shutdown (2000)

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Montgomery Ward announced it would go out of business after 128 years, closing the book on one of America’s oldest retailers. The shutdown marked a dramatic fall for a catalog pioneer that failed to adapt to changing retail competition.

Dec. 29

LTV Steel — Bankruptcy Filing (2000)

LTV Steel filed bankruptcy as falling steel prices and heavy debt overwhelmed the company. Once one of the largest steel producers in the U.S., it ultimately dissolved in 2001, marking a major collapse in the American steel industry.

Dec. 30

HealthSouth — Settlement (2004)

HealthSouth agreed to pay $325 million to resolve allegations that it defrauded Medicare and other federal healthcare programs as part of a massive accounting scandal. Read More: Richard Scrushy – HealthSouth (Business Blunders Hall Of Shame)

Dentsu — CEO Resignation (2016)

Tadashi Ishii resigned as CEO of Dentsu after a court ruled an employee’s suicide was caused by overwork, a case that put Japan’s “karoshi” culture under global scrutiny.

Dec. 31

Dutch East India Co. — Dissolution (1799)

The Dutch East India Co. was formally dissolved after years of corruption, mismanagement, and mounting debt. Once the world’s first multinational corporation, its collapse marked the end of a global trading empire.

Resolution Trust Corp. — Wind Down (1995)

The Resolution Trust Corp. officially terminated its operations after resolving hundreds of failed savings and loan institutions. Created in the wake of the S&L crisis, the RTC’s closure marked the end of one of the largest financial cleanups in U.S. history.

Mervyn’s — Liquidation (2008)

Mervyn’s closed its remaining stores following a bankruptcy liquidation, ending the run of a once-prominent regional retailer. The collapse highlighted the toll of private equity ownership, debt, and shifting consumer habits.

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