Flooz
 | |
| Company type | Corporation (closed) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Internet payments |
| Founded | February 1999[1]inNew York City |
| Defunct | August 26, 2001 |
| Headquarters | New York City |
| Products | Flooz |
| Website | flooz(web archive) |
Floozwas adot-comventure, now defunct, based inNew York Citythat went online in February 1999. It was promoted by comic actressWhoopi Goldbergin a series of television advertisements.[1]Started byiVillageco-founderRobert Levitan,the company attempted to establish acurrencyunique toInternetmerchants, somewhat similar in concept to airlinefrequent flyer programsor grocery store stamp books. The name "flooz" was based upon the Arabic word for money, فلوس,fuloos.Users accumulated flooz credits either as a promotional bonus given away by some internet businesses or purchased directly from flooz which then could be redeemed for merchandise at a variety of participating online stores. Adoption of flooz by both merchants and customers proved limited, and it never established itself as a widely recognizedmedium of exchange,which hindered both its usefulness and appeal.
Use by crime syndicate
[edit]In 2001, Flooz was notified by theFederal Bureau of Investigationthat a Russian-Filipino organized crime syndicate used $300,000 worth of Flooz and stolen credit card numbers as part of amoney-launderingscheme, in which stolen credit cards were used to purchase currency and then redeemed.[2][3]Levitan has stated that fraudulent purchases accounted for 19% of consumer credit card transactions by mid-2001.[4]
Closure
[edit]The company announced its closure on August 26, 2001, perceived as an early indicator of the growingdot-com bubble burst.[4]Upon the company's closing, all unused flooz credits became worthless and nonrefundable. Over its short history, flooz reportedly exhausted from $35 million to $50 million in venture capital.[5]The company's bankruptcy was cited as having approximately 325,000 creditors.[6]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^abKosoff, Maya (October 16, 2015)."These dot-com startups look just like some of today's hottest tech companies — here's what happened to them".Business Insider.RetrievedFebruary 27,2016.
- ^Tedeschi, Bob (August 27, 2001)."E-Commerce Report; Seller of Online Currency May Have Been Victim of Fraud".The New York Times.RetrievedFebruary 28,2016.
- ^"A decade before crypto, one digital currency conquered the world — then failed spectacularly".The Hustle.2018-06-30.Retrieved2022-05-09.
- ^abAune, Sean P. (January 25, 2010)."Five Dot-Coms That Didn't Survive The Bubble".TechnoBuffalo.RetrievedFebruary 28,2016.
- ^David Goldman.Top 10 dot-com flopsCNNMoney.March 2, 2015.
- ^Myers, Courtney Boyd (July 30, 2011)."Where are they now? New York City's Dot Com Entrepreneurs: Part One".TNW.Retrieved2022-05-09.
