Meet Jérôme Kerviel, the poorest person in the world: How does he have such a huge debt?
Jérôme Kerviel is a former French trader with vast knowledge of computers and finance. He worked for Société Générale (SocGen) bank. Jérôme became the poorest person in the world after a trading scandal at the bank led to him having the most debt than anyone else worldwide. Nevertheless, Jérôme Kerviel's status as the world's poorest person does not mean he is impoverished. He can afford basic needs even with a net worth of -$7.2 billion. This article reveals how Jérôme got into debt, lost his job, the jail term, and more details.
Source: Getty Images
Jérôme Kerviel has quite a decent and comfortable life. The French national worked for Société Générale Bank of France in Europe as a junior derivatives trader. He plunged into debt after engaging in arbitrage trading using company funds. Société Générale discovered Jérôme's unauthorized trading activities on January 19, 2008, after losing $7.2 billion. He was accused of breach of trust, forgery, and unauthorized use of computers. If you want to know more about the lawsuit and Jérôme's whereabouts, read more details below.
Profile summary
| Full name | Jérôme Kerviel |
| Gender | Male |
| Famous as | Jérôme , the poorest man in the world |
| Date of birth | January 11, 1977 |
| Zodiac sign | Capricorn |
| Place of birth | Pont-l'Abbé, Brittany, France |
| Age | 46 years (as of July 2023) |
| Residence | France |
| Nationality | French |
| Ethnicity | White |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Mother | Marie-Josée Kerviel |
| Father | Charles Kerviel |
| Sibling | Olivier Kerviel |
| Sexuality | Straight |
| Marital status | Single |
| Alma mater | University of Nantes, Lumière University Lyon 2 |
| Qualifications | Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Finance |
| Profession | IT consultant, former stock trader |
| Net worth | -$7.2 million |
| @jeromekerviel |
Jérôme Kerviel's biography
Jérôme Kerviel is a French IT consultant and a former stock trader. He was born on January 11, 1977, to Marie-Josée (a retired hairdresser) and Charles (a blacksmith). Jérôme was raised alongside his older brother, Olivier.
Educational background
Kerviel graduated from the University of Nantes with a bachelor's degree in Finance in 1999 and a Master's in Finance from the Lumière University Lyon 2 in 2000.
Source: Getty Images
Who is the highest person in debt?
Jérôme Kerviel is the world's poorest and most indebted man. He owes the highest amount of debt to third parties than any individual in the world. Jérôme lost his job at SocGen Bank in Europe due to illegal trade transactions.
Jérôme Kerviel's story
Jérôme Kerviel joined the Société Générale (SocGen) bank in the summer of 2000. He worked in the compliance department before being promoted to the Delta One division in 2005. The bank assigned him the role of a junior trader with an annual salary of about $66000. Jérôme almost brought the banking giant to its knees in 2008.
What did Jérôme Kerviel do?
SocGen claimed Jérôme's phony trades began in late 2006 and early 2007. He would create losing trades to cover his early wins and gains. The fake trading gradually rose in frequency and scale.
Kerviel had amassed a stock index accumulation of about $73 billion ($7.2 billion loss) for the Société Générale bank by the time the bank uncovered his illegal trades. The figure was far higher than SocGen's total market capitalization.
The bank sued him for breach of trust, fraud, and forgery against him in January 2008. It also accused him of abuse of confidential and illegal access to the bank's computers.
Although Kerviel admitted to making fraudulent transactions, he argued that the bank was silent when the deals went well. They were only turned against him when the trades were unprofitable.
SocGen's internal report discovered that managers did not follow up on warnings about Jérôme's activities. Several people resigned, but no further charges were filed.
Source: Getty Images
What happened to Kerviel?
The charges SocGen bank levied against him carried a maximum of three years prison terms. In June 2010, he was found guilty, sentenced to five years prison time (with two years suspension), ordered to repay SocGen the $7.2 billion he lost, and permanently banned from working in financial services.
In October 2012, a Paris appeal court reduced Jérôme Kerviel's sentence to three years. He turned himself in to the French authorities in 2014 and spent less than five months in jail. Jérôme was released with a GPS-tracking ankle bracelet and went to work at an IT consultancy firm.
In February 2014, he met Pope Francis in the Vatican City to discuss the challenges of modern capitalism. After that, Jérôme made a pilgrimage by foot from Rome in Italy back to France while sensitizing people against the "tyranny" of financial markets.
Does Jérôme Kerviel still owe money?
Jérôme Kerviel still owes the Société Générale Bank of France. The court reduced his $7.2 billion debt to around $1 million in 2016.
What does Jérôme Kerviel do now?
Jérôme Kerviel works as an IT consultant at Lemaire Consultants. The company hired him in 2008 during his provisional release. Jérôme is also an author and has published three books, J'aurais pu passer à côté de ma vie (2016), Angrenajul: Memoriile unui trader (2010), and L'Engrenage: MÉMOIRES D'UN TRADER (2010).
Who is Jérôme Kerviel's wife?
Jérôme was previously married, but he and his wife divorced in 2008.
What is Jérôme Kerviel's net worth in 2023?
The French IT consultant and former trader has a -$7.2 billion net worth, which is the amount of money he lost while trading for his former employer, Société Générale (SocGen) bank.
Source: Getty Images
Who is the poorest man in the world?
Jérôme Kerviel, a former French trader, is the most indebted person in the world. The Société Générale Bank of France sued him in 2008 for losing €4.9 billion ($7.2 billion) in unsanctioned arbitrage trading transactions.
How did Jérôme Kerviel lose his money?
Jérôme Kerviel became poor after doing unapproved arbitrage trading transactions, making his bank lose $7.2 billion. He was a junior derivatives trader at the Société Générale Bank of France in Europe.
Facts about Jérôme Kerviel
- Jérôme served less than five months in jail.
- He is an activist against modern capitalism on his Instagram page.
- Kerviel has long maintained that losing his job at SocGen was wrongful termination.
Jérôme Kerviel became the poorest person in the world after doing unauthorized arbitrage trading transactions to make profits for his former employer, Société Générale Bank of France. The computer genius is working for another company and trying to rebuild his life.
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Ruth Gitonga (Lifestyle writer) Ruth Gitonga has a background experience in Mass Communication for over six years. She graduated from the University of Nairobi with a degree in Mass Communication in December 2014. In 2023, Ruth finished the AFP course on Digital Investigation Techniques. She has worked for Briefly.co.za for five years now. She specializes in topics like lifestyle, entertainment, travel, technology, and sports. Email: gitongaruth14@gmail.com.
Peris Walubengo (Lifestyle writer) Peris Walubengo is a content creator with 5 years of experience writing articles, researching, editing, and proofreading. She has a Bachelor of Commerce & IT from the University of Nairobi and joined Briefly.co.za in November 2019. The writer completed a Google News Initiate Course. She covers bios, marketing & finance, tech, fashion & beauty, recipes, movies & gaming reviews, culture & travel. You can email her at perisrodah254@gmail.com.
