Well, if anyone will know how to operate a long-running fraud it would be that guy.
(Sorry, but someone had to say it...)
(Sorry, but someone had to say it...)
If it were a binary decision, I wouldn't put him in the bad guy camp. At least based on what I know about the guy.
Even in Ye Olden Daze, banks would send deposits of things like gold and silver right back out the door as loans.