What goes up must come down. It's a natural law that the New Economy just learned all over again. Recent times have been fantastically dramatic in the cloistered world of American business: Narratives full of larger-than-life characters, outsized egos, astonishing hubris, and lots and lots of money. It's action-packed. It makes good comics. That's the idea behind Titans of Finance, a new and groundbreaking merger of reality - straight from the business pages - and comix. You've never seen anything like it: True tales from the world of big money, wittily translated through America's most populist medium. Meet Ron Perelman, the man who made millions while presiding over the Mighty Marvel Comics train wreck. Thrill to the antics of "Chainsaw" Al Dunlap, Mike "The V-Man" Vranos, and "Jaybird" Goldinger - and many more of Wall Street's most well-known Icaruses. These aren't just instructive episodes about the current climate. They're timeless tales, like the Bible or Cats. Never mind Spawn and Spider-man. These are our superheroes now. These tales "hit the mark," says Harvey Pekar, and are "a brilliant use of the medium," according to TheStreet.com's James J. Cramer. Best of all, it's all true! Titans of Finance is entirely based on press accounts. The results are mind-blowing. Over the past five years, in fact, Titans has crushed the benchmark S&P 500. You've never seen anything like it - this is one acquisition you won't regret.
The intimate, fly-on-the wall tale of the decline and fall of an America icon With one notable exception, the firms that make up what we know as Wall Street have always been part of an inbred, insular culture that most people only vaguely understand. The exception was Merrill Lynch, a firm that revolutionized the stock market by bringing Wall Street to Main Street, setting up offices in far-flung cities and towns long ignored by the giants of finance. With its “thundering herd” of financial advisers, perhaps no other business, whether in financial services or elsewhere, so epitomized the American spirit. Merrill Lynch was not only “bullish on America,” it was a big reason why so many average Americans were able to grow wealthy by investing in the stock market. Merrill Lynch was an icon. Its sudden decline, collapse, and sale to Bank of America was a shock. How did it happen? Why did it happen? And what does this story of greed, hubris, and incompetence tell us about the culture of Wall Street that continues to this day even though it came close to destroying the American economy? A culture in which the CEO of a firm losing $28 billion pushes hard to be paid a $25 million bonus. A culture in which two Merrill Lynch executives are guaranteed bonuses of $30 million and $40 million for four months’ work, even while the firm is struggling to reduce its losses by firing thousands of employees. Based on unparalleled sources at both Merrill Lynch and Bank of America, Greg Farrell’s Crash of the Titans is a Shakespearean saga of three flawed masters of the universe. E. Stanley O’Neal, whose inspiring rise from the segregated South to the corner office of Merrill Lynch—where he engineered a successful turnaround—was undone by his belief that a smooth-talking salesman could handle one of the most difficult jobs on Wall Street. Because he enjoyed O’Neal’s support, this executive was allowed to build up an astonishing $30 billion position in CDOs on the firm’s balance sheet, at a time when all other Wall Street firms were desperately trying to exit the business. After O’Neal comes John Thain, the cerebral, MIT-educated technocrat whose rescue of the New York Stock Exchange earned him the nickname “Super Thain.” He was hired to save Merrill Lynch in late 2007, but his belief that the markets would rebound led him to underestimate the depth of Merrill’s problems. Finally, we meet Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis, a street fighter raised barely above the poverty line in rural Georgia, whose “my way or the highway” management style suffers fools more easily than potential rivals, and who made a $50 billion commitment over a September weekend to buy a business he really didn’t understand, thus jeopardizing his own institution. The merger itself turns out to be a bizarre combination of cultures that blend like oil and water, where slick Wall Street bankers suddenly find themselves reporting to a cast of characters straight out of the Beverly Hillbillies. BofA’s inbred culture, which perceived New York banks its enemies, was based on loyalty and a good-ol’-boy network in which competence played second fiddle to blind obedience. Crash of the Titans is a financial thriller that puts you in the theater as the historic events of the financial crisis unfold and people responsible for billion of dollars of other people’s money gamble recklessly to enhance their power and their paychecks or to save their own skins. Its wealth of never-before-revealed information and focus on two icons of corporate America make it the book that puts together all the pieces of the Wall Street disaster.
Argues that the stock market crash of 1929 and subsequent Depression occurred as a result of poor decisions on the part of four central bankers who jointly attempted to reconstruct international finance by reinstating the gold standard.
Ardeshir Darabshaw Shroff (1899-1965), Eminent Industrialist, Banker And Economist, Is Considered One Of The Architects Of Free India S Industrial Development And Modernization. Among The Earliest Exponents Of Free Enterprise In India, Shroff, Once Called A Congress Economist , Represented The Country As A Non-Official Delegate At The 1944 Bretton Woods Conference And Was An Author Of The Bombay Plan, Prepared By Eight Leading Industrialists In 1944 As A Blueprint For India S Post-War Economy. Later, In The Fifties, As Founder-Director Of The Investment Corporation Of India, Chairman Of Bank Of India And The New India Assurance Company, And Director Of Tatas And Many Other Leading Companies, He Became A Powerful Spokesman For Private Industry In An Increasingly Government Regulated Economy. His Steadfast Adherence To A Vision Of Free Enterprise In India Has Been Vindicated Thirty-Five Years Later By The Liberalization Policies Pursued In The Nineties. This Authorized Biography By Sucheta Dalal Draws Upon The Personal Papers Of A.D. Shroff, The Tata Central Archives, The Papers And Libraries Of The Bank Of India, Hdfc, And Several Other Institutions With Which He Was Associated. Based On These Sources And Interviews With Industrialists, Shroff S Colleagues, Family Members And Close Friends, Dalal Has Presented A Compelling Portrait Of Shroff Whom J.R.D. Tata Once Described As A Man With An Extremely Powerful Mind And Moral Courage . As A True Patriot, Shroff Was A Trenchant Critic Of Official Policies, Like The Nationalization Of Insurance, Which He Felt Were Contrary To The Nation S Interests. His Lone Battle For Free Enterprise From The Platform Of The Newly Founded Forum Of Free Enterprise In 1956, Despite Resistance From Some Quarters Of Private Industry And Great Opposition From The Governmental Quarters, Is Seen As A Measure Of His Fearless And Independent Nature. While Tracking Shroff S Phenomenal Professional Career, The Author Also Brings Out Many Facets Of His Forceful Personality: His Determination, His Zest For Life, And His Caustic Wit. Informed And Objective, This Account Is A Warm And Fitting Tribute To A Visionary And An Exceptional Indian In His Birth Centenary Year.
"Fitness, money, and wisdom--here are the tools. Over the last two years ... Tim Ferriss has collected the routines and tools of world-class performers around the globe. Now, the distilled notebook of tips and tricks that helped him double his income, flexibility, happiness, and more is available as Tools of Titans"--Page 4 of cover.
Wealthy, powerful, and potentially dangerous, hedge-find managers have emerged as the stars of twenty-first century capitalism. Based on unprecedented access to the industry, More Money Than God provides the first authoritative history of hedge funds. This is the inside story of their origins in the 1960s and 1970s, their explosive battles with central banks in the 1980s and 1990s, and finally their role in the financial crisis of 2007-9. Hedge funds reward risk takers, so they tend to attract larger-than-life personalities. Jim Simons began life as a code-breaker and mathematician, co-authoring a paper on theoretical geometry that led to breakthroughs in string theory. Ken Griffin started out trading convertible bonds from his Harvard dorm room. Paul Tudor Jones happily declared that a 1929-style crash would be 'total rock-and-roll' for him. Michael Steinhardt was capable of reducing underlings to sobs. 'All I want to do is kill myself,' one said. 'Can I watch?' Steinhardt responded. A saga of riches and rich egos, this is also a history of discovery. Drawing on insights from mathematics, economics and psychology to crack the mysteries of the market, hedge funds have transformed the world, spawning new markets in exotic financial instruments and rewriting the rules of capitalism. And while major banks, brokers, home lenders, insurers and money market funds failed or were bailed out during the crisis of 2007-9, the hedge-fund industry survived the test, proving that money can be successfully managed without taxpayer safety nets. Anybody pondering fixes to the financial system could usefully start here: the future of finance lies in the history of hedge funds.
In "How To Be A Billionaire" erfahren Sie, wie sich manche Leute in einem ganz bestimmten Bereich menschlichen Strebens hervorgetan haben, nämlich im Streben nach Geld. Hier geht es nicht um das halbe Prozent der amerikanerikanischen Bevölkerung, das über einen Kapitalwert von einer Million Dollar verfügt. Hier geht es um Amerikaner, die 1.000 bis 40.000 Millionen Dollar ihr eigen nennen. In diesem Buch wird zum ersten Mal diese massive Anhäufung von privatem Vermögen ausführlich untersucht. Hierbei stützt sich Fridson verstärkt auf Biographien und journalistische Reportagen, die die Findigkeit, den Elan und die Rücksichtslosigkeit dokumentieren, auf die sich diese Vermögen gründen. Er enthüllt die wichtigsten Taktiken, Prinzipien und Strategien, die die Reichen superreich gemacht haben, wie z. B: "Verstoße gegen die Regeln", "Nachahmung ist besser als Innovation", "Beherrsche den Markt", "Investiere in politischen Einfluß" und "Übertrumpfe die Konkurrenz". Erläutert wird das gesamte Repertoire, angefangen bei Verhandlungstechniken über Tipps für den besten Deal bis hin zur Wahl der Branche und zum Börsengang des Unternehmens. Eine unverzichtbare Lektüre für jeden, der (erfolg)reicher werden will. (12/99)
This book focuses on the 11 men, lawyers and bankers, who are responsible for the creation of Wall Street's merger industry. It specifically concentrates on the events and personalities who dominated Wall Street during the takeover battles of the 1970s and 1980s. Lawyers Joe Flom and Marty Lipton, the godfathers of modern M&A, educated bankers on takeover laws and regulations as well as tactics. Flom and Lipton were also superlative businessmen who built their own firms to become Wall Street powerhouses. The two men drew into their orbit a circle of bankers. Felix Rohatyn, Ira Harris, Steve Friedman, Geoff Boisi, Eric Gleacher and Bruce Wasserstein were close to Lipton. Robert Greenhill and Joe Perella were close to Flom. M&A Titans provides insight into the culture of the different investment banks and how each of the bankers influenced the firms they worked in as they became more powerful. Some such as Gleacher, Harris, Wasserstein, Perella and Greenhill clashed with the men running their firms and left. Others such as Friedman and Boisi stayed and profoundly influenced how the firm did business. The career of Michael Milken, perhaps the notorious name on Wall Street in the 1980s, is also examined as well as the actions and tactics of his firm, Drexel Burnham Lambert. Milken and Drexel paved the way for the growth of private equity and helped popularize attacks on management by investors such as Boone Pickens and Carl Icahn.
Become a savvy investor with this updated Wall Street Journal bestseller Want to take charge of your financial future? This national bestselling guide has been thoroughly updated to provide you with the latest insights into smart investing, from weighing your investment options (such as stocks, real estate, and small business) to understanding risks and returns, managing your portfolio, and much more.Get time-tested investment advice -- expert author Eric Tyson shares his extensive knowledge and reveals how to invest in challenging marketsDiscover all the fundamenta.
Two leading figures from the world of finance show how progressives can take their money away from conservative financial institutions and put it to good, lasting social use The U.S. financial system may be working for some people, but it isn't working for most of us who care about progressive causes. In fact, our financial system taps your money to pay for a conservative agenda. It's a heads-they-win, tails-you-lose game when the fees you pay to use your credit card finance fossil fuels even when you buy green products. Conservative "money muscle" shapes our culture, society, politics, and public policy. In this bold call to action, two leaders from the world of progressive finance propose a strategy to challenge this conservative dominance of the financial sector: organized progressive money. It's a $10 trillion plan for a full- service, market-scale progressive financial system. Mestrich and Pinsky explain how progressives can take control with financial institutions of their own and products that align with progressive values. Organized Money warns that until progressives organize their money, they will lose again and again while conservatives will keep winning. It's a crucial message for the next progressive era, starting with the make-or-break 2020 election cycle, where American voters will be presented with a choice between conservative market fundamentalism that leaves them out or inclusive restorative capitalism that is good for people as well as profits. Written in clear, engaging prose for non- financial readers and finance leaders alike, Organized Money is required reading for everyone ready to confront the excesses of conservative power and influence.
