An abbreviation for high yield investment program which is essentially a Ponzi scheme by which original “investors” (instigators of the fraud) claim to offer prospect investors, who invest some cash in the scheme, amazing returns (100% to more than 400%, or usually 1% a day). Early investors depend on more and more people being conned and enrolled in the scam, with funds from those who join late being used to reward early entrants. While the instigator of the fraud makes substantial returns, most late entrants attempt hard to recruit new members in order to stabilize their dwindling ever returns.

Late “investors” receive less returns on their money and, as a result, they seek more participants to prop up their returns. However, as more “investors” join the scheme, returns steadily decrease until the number of new entrants dwindles, returns dry up and the scheme crumbles down.