Madoff Talks: uncovering what the family of the late Wall Street fraudster knew

A new book, based on unprecedented access to Bernie Madoff, suggests it may never be possible to separate knowledge from the web of lies

What's a Ponzi scheme?" Ruth Madoff asked her husband Bernard after he revealed to her that his respected investment company was actually one of the largest frauds in history, according to a new book examining the life of the late fraudster.

Just how much Madoff's family knew about his massive scheme has been a riddle since he was convicted of orchestrating his $17.5bn scam in 2009. Ruth Madoff, the couple's two sons and Bernard Madoff's brother Peter all worked for the company.