A devastated wife from San Francisco called into “The Ramsey Show” saying that just months after paying off $80,000 in debt and finally feeling financially stable, her family’s progress completely unraveled.
The story left personal finance experts Dave Ramsey and Jade Warshaw stunned. The reason: her husband secretly took out nearly $200,000 in high-interest personal loans and poured the money into cryptocurrency investments that ultimately vanished in what appears to be a scam.
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A Financial Turnaround That Suddenly Collapsed
Ana said that she and her husband had followed Ramsey’s debt plan since 2022. By May 2024, they had paid off roughly $80,000 and were left with only their mortgage.
Then her husband started talking to friends about cryptocurrency. He began investing small amounts and saw early gains. That success gave him the confidence to make a much bigger move, but without telling his wife.
“He took a big loan of $200,000,” Ana said. “I was in total panic when he told me that.”
The money went into various crypto assets, including XRP and Trump coins, through a platform called Pionex. On top of that, he invested $50,000 that belonged to his mother. Ana learned what happened only after the money was already gone.
“So he got scammed?” Ramsey asked.
“Yes,” Ana replied. “He lost everything.”
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The couple now owes close to $200,000 they no longer have. Their monthly payments total about $5,000, with interest rates around 23%. Their household income is roughly $10,000 per month. Their home is worth about $700,000, with $400,000 still owed.
Ramsey laughed out loud. He asked, “So where did you bury him?” a reaction to the scale of the deception that captured the mood of disbelief. He also added that the high interest rates aren’t their real problem, “stupidity is.”
‘God Did Not Do This’
Beyond the financial damage, the emotional fallout was clear. Ana said her husband blamed the loss on divine punishment for going behind her back. Ramsey immediately shut that down. “No, God did not do this,” he said. “Don’t blame God when you’re stupid.”
Ramsey said that failing to fully own the mistake would result in the same behavior repeating later. “If you blame it on God, then what are you going to blame it on next time? The devil?” he told Ana.
Despite the chaos, Ramsey was clear that bankruptcy was not the answer. “You’re not bankrupt,” he told Ana. “You make enough money to clean this up.”
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He advised against a second mortgage and pushed for aggressive repayment instead. “You need to be paying $6,000 a month,” Ramsey said. “You already paid off $80,000 when both of your brains were working at the same time. You know how to do this.”
The bigger issue, he added, was trust. “We don’t need a punishment,” Ramsey said. “We need a grown-up husband.”
When Professional Advice Matters
Stories like Ana’s highlight how quickly financial decisions made in isolation can result in long-term damage. Large bets, secret loans, and advice from friends instead of professionals can destroy years of progress almost overnight.
For households earning six figures or approaching major financial decisions, working with a qualified advisor can help prevent costly mistakes. Services like WiserAdvisor connect individuals with vetted financial advisors for free consultations, giving families a chance to talk through options before emotions or hype take over.
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