Mark Cuban's Employee Once Stole $82,000 Leaving Him 'Flat Broke' – Now That He's A Billionaire, He Says: 'People Steal. I Can Afford It'

Mark Cuban doesn't let a little theft ruin his outlook on people. To him, it just comes with the territory. 

In a Club Shay Shay interview posted on YouTube earlier this month, he was asked if betrayal makes him sour, given his generosity over the years. Cuban brushed it off, saying, "No, because people steal. What am I gonna do? It's a good problem to have. I can afford it." But while he might be able to take such losses in stride today, it wasn't always that way.

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Back in his early days with MicroSolutions, things were tight. Cuban recounted how an employee, Renee Hardy, stole $82,000 out of the $84,000 they had in the bank. He explained that Hardy, who handled payables, simply whited out the payee names on checks and wrote in her own. "I'll never forget getting a call from the bank. They said, ‘This woman just came through the drive-thru and the checks were whited out,'" he shared. "She took $82,000 of the $84,000 we had. We were flat broke."

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This wasn't a small setback. At that time, Cuban was nowhere near the billionaire he is today. He and his team had to contact vendors, pleading for their patience and promising they'd make things right. Despite the obvious frustration, Cuban took it in stride. He said, "We had to call the vendors and say, ‘Please work with us; we'll bust our ass, we'll make sure you get paid.' And they did."

Years later, the mystery surrounding Hardy persists. Cuban joked that people still reach out to him whenever they encounter someone with her name. He added, "No one's ever found her. She probably changed her name or whatever."

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Though Cuban has come a long way since his days of hustling with MicroSolutions, some things haven't changed. When asked if his circle of friends shifted as his wealth grew, he explained that he's still close with old friends. "My guys from grade school and high school, they're still my buddies," he said. He reminisced about his early days in Dallas, sleeping "five or six guys in a three-bedroom apartment." Even as his net worth skyrocketed, those friendships held strong.

Cuban also shared how his father's work ethic influenced his drive. He explained how his dad never made more than $40,000 a year, yet refused to retire even after Cuban started making money. "He had to work. That's his thing," Cuban said. 

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Despite the ups and downs, Cuban's perspective on life remains remarkably grounded. His recent venture, Cost Plus Drugs, aims to bring transparency to health care pricing, a mission rooted in his desire to make a positive impact. Reflecting on his journey, he's taken his share of hits, but Cuban's resilience and focus on helping others continue to guide his path.

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