Ponzi Scheme

Scheme  1. A systematic plan of action.  2. A secret or devious plan; a plot.

A Ponzi Scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to separate investors from their own money or money paid by subsequent investors, rather than from any actual profit earned. The system is destined to collapse because the earnings, if any, are less than the payment to investors.(Wikipedia)

An example is the Bernie Madoff  scheme.