The Loan-Sharking Racket!

https://thenewyorkmafia.com/mafia-loansharking-racket-shylocking/

Shylocking, usury, juice, tropicana, loansharking, or six-for-five — by any other name — loaning money out at exorbitant interest rates has always been — and still remains — a multi-zillion dollar racket for the mob.

The Mob's behind the times with loan sharking. Anyone can get into "payday loans," where interest can run as high as 300 percent--more if the borrower rolls over the loan. And the lender doesn't have to break kneecaps--he can get the courts to help him collect.

Lol. No doubt. But although its 300%. Its STILL only 300%. Lol. Turnbull, some of these online payday loan companies are charging a compounded rate exceeding over 1000% to 1800% annually!!! Its a bad fucking joke.

They'll give Joe mozzarella 5 years for lending $5,000 at 3% weekly (156% annually) YET, these so-called legit payday companies get away with charging 10 times more than that! WTF???

Its called hypocrisy!

Usury they call it in Italy.

Another problem for the Mob: the victim can be charged, under federal and state RICO laws, for being part of a "Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organization" simply by paying vig to a Mob associate. The victim, looking at double-digit time, can easily be coerced by law enforcement to testify against the loan shark.

Another factor is that up until the late-1969 into the mid-1970s, almost all usury cases were prosecuted in county/state court. Simple usury usually carried a one-year sentence. Maximum penalties went as high as 7.5 years for a first-offense, and up to 15 years if proven you made multiple loans (in order words, that you were in the 'business' of shylocking. Or, if you had been previously convicted of such conduct.)

An extortion charge (carrying 20 years) was served for those who used threats or forced to collect. But, once again, it was a rare bird indeed who ever suffered the top draconian penalty.
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But that all changed with RICO. Now, usurious offenses were no longer charged as such, they was charged as "extortionate credit transactions" -- with each count carrying a 20 year prison term. [And guys started getting heavily time with a 5 year or 10 year sentence very common]