The aftershocks of the 2008 financial crisis still appear in the headlines most recently the government's quest to crush Moodys and S&P for failure to rate securities correctly given the risk. Were these agencies the only responsible parties? “To me, as a multi-decade, veteran Lehman investment banker, the breathtaking death of my firm appeared impossible as little as three days ahead of the bankruptcy filing. Not only did I consider our ‘master of the universe’ firm invincible, but, like my colleagues, when it became clear we were in deep trouble, it was unfathomable that the US government could misstep so foolishly as to let any bulge bracket investment bank simply fail. The worst case seemed to be the Bear Stearns route.” For the first time, Joe Tibman pulls back the kimono to share intriguing information and detail about Lehman Brothers and the economic meltdown that has never before been revealed: • How Lehman Brothers almost went under 10 years earlier but was, in a lucky turn of events, rescued from the brink of disaster when the U.S. government bailed out Mexico before it defaulted on billions of dollars in bonds? • How, in the most detailed and intimate account of Lehman after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack, when the firm and its people were ripped from their home, Fuld’s “One Firm” strategy finally took root, sweeping away the vestiges of internal war inside Lehman’s own halls, turning tragedy to triumph for a newly united firm where survival and success meant much more than a payday? • What role did Paulson play? Cox? Bernanke? Greenspan? Geithner? Clinton? Phil Gramm? Congress? Summers? • No reporter has ever been able to uncover why the rating agencies rated subprime securities so high. These agencies have never come clean with a clear statement on this issue. They just fired subprime analysts. For the first time in this book, Tibman discloses the key facts behind the subprime rating disaster.

For the first time, Joe Tibman pulls back the kimono to share intriguing information and detail about Lehman Brothers and the economic meltdown that has never before been revealed:

Corporate misgovernance and the failure of government regulation have led to major financial fiascos. 'Disorganized crimes' are disruptive and costly. Munk links the two major eras of corporate misgovernance during the last decade to explain how these events occur and what can be done to prevent them from re-occurring.

The “greater fool” theory of economics states that it’s possible to make money by buying paper (securities), whether overvalued or not, and later, selling it at a profit because there will always be an even greater fool willing to pay the higher price. Many described in this book profited by peddling such worthless junk to foolish investors. But for some people—Bernie Madoff, Norman Hsu, Sholam Weiss, and “Crazie Eddie” Antar, aka the “Darth Vader of Capitalism”—overvalued securities were not enough. Outright fraud was their way of life. History of Greed is the compelling inside story of the names you know—Charles Ponzi, Baron Rothschild, Lou Pearlman—and the names you don’t—Isaac Le Maire, the world’s first “naked” short-seller. It’s also our story—why we ignore the lessons of the past and fall prey, most every time, to the promise of easy money. For thousands of years, alchemists unsuccessfully tried to turn worthless base metals into gold. Where science failed at turning nothing into something, business succeeded. Sometimes we praise the creators of derivatives, collateral debt obligations, subprime mortgages, credit default swaps, or auction rate securities as Wall Street’s new financial wizards, the creators of “magic paper.” Other times, we vilify and prosecute them as scam artists. Sometimes, it’s hard to tell who is who. History of Greed reveals the inside secrets of how the markets really work, and how scam artists abuse them to gain an unfair edge or to outright steal. It describes how luftgescheft (“air business”), wizardry, dishonesty, and fraud are used to swindle people. Along with a comprehensive bibliography, History of Greed also details: 400 years of financial fraud—from everyday fraud to the odd and unusual Accounting fraud (phantom sales), stock option fraud (backdating), auction rate securities, hedge fund fraud, Ponzi schemes, promotion fraud (pump-and-dump scams), and money laundering How to detect fraudulent schemes How government regulation only fixes yesterday’s problems If it’s too good to be true, it probably is. If they say you can’t lose, you probably will. History of Greed shows that there really is no such thing as a free lunch, while also detailing how not to become the “greater fool.”

Volume 1 of 'The Strategic Analysis of Financial Markets,' — Framework, is premised on the belief that markets can be understood only by dropping the assumptions of rationality and efficient markets in their extreme forms, and showing that markets still have an inherent order and inherent logic. But that order results primarily from the 'predictable irrationality' of investors, as well as from people's uncoordinated attempts to profit. The market patterns that result do not rely on rationality or efficiency.A framework is developed for understanding financial markets using a combination of psychology, statistics, game and gambling analysis, market history and the author's experience. It expresses analytically how professional investors and traders think about markets — as games in which other participants employ inferior, partially predictable strategies. Those strategies' interactions can be toxic and lead to booms, bubbles, busts and crashes, or can be less dramatic, leading to various patterns that are mistakenly called 'market inefficiencies' and 'stylized facts.'A logical case is constructed, starting from two foundations, the psychology of human decision making and the 'Fundamental Laws of Gambling.' Applying the Fundamental Laws to trading leads to the idea of 'gambling rationality' (grationality), replacing the efficient market's concept of 'rationality.' By classifying things that are likely to have semi-predictable price impacts (price 'distorters'), one can identify, explore through data analysis, and create winning trading ideas and systems. A structured way of doing all this is proposed: the six-step 'Strategic Analysis of Market Method.' Examples are given in this and Volume 2.Volume 2 of 'The Strategic Analysis of Financial Markets' — Trading System Analytics, continues the development of Volume 1 by introducing tools and techniques for developing trading systems and by illustrating them using real markets. The difference between these two Volumes and the rest of the literature is its rigor. It describes trading as a form of gambling that when properly executed, is quite logical, and is well known to professional gamblers and analytical traders.But even those elites might be surprised at the extent to which quantitative methods have been justified and applied, including a life cycle theory of trading systems. Apart from a few sections that develop background material, Volume 2 creates from scratch a trading system for Eurodollar futures using principles of the Strategic Analysis of Markets Method (SAMM), a principled, step-by-step approach to developing profitable trading systems. It has an entire Chapter on mechanical methods for testing and improvement of trading systems, which transcends the rather unstructured and unsatisfactory 'backtesting' literature. It presents a breakout trend following system developed using factor models. It also presents a specific pairs trading system, and discusses its life cycle from an early, highly profitable period to its eventual demise. Recent developments in momentum trading and suggestions on improvements are also discussed.

A riveting look at the financial cycles in American economic history from colonial times to the present day, with an eye on the similarities and differences between past and present conditions as analyzed by leading economic historians. The United States has emerged from the financial chaos of its last economic crisis, yet still very few sources place the events of the modern era within the context of financial downturns of the past. An examination of the trends and patterns of previous depressions and recessions may allow us to recognize—and avoid—the behaviors and practices that prolonged the fiscal problems of previous generations. This thought-provoking encyclopedia presents an overview of notable economic events, their causes and cures, and their social and political impact on the nation. Encyclopedia of American Recessions and Depressions offers a comprehensive survey on the topic from the years 1783 to 1789 under the Articles of Confederation through the panics of the 19th century and the Great Depression of the 1930s to the Great Recession of 2008. Written in an accessible, engaging style, the volumes contain 14 detailed essays covering each economic event and 140 entries covering various related individuals, issues, court cases, legislation, and significant events. Primary source documents, including the Specie Circular, the Embargo Act, and the National Labor Relations Act, provide relevancy to the real world and a context for key events.

Since the mid-20th century, organizational theorists have increasingly distanced themselves from the study of core societal power centers and important policy issues of the day. This title addresses the global financial crisis debates.

This timely and authoritative set explores three centuries of good times and hard times in major economies throughout the world. More than 400 signed articles cover events from Tulipmania during the 1630s to the U.S. federal stimulus package of 2009, and introduce readers to underlying concepts, recurring themes, major institutions, and notable figures. Written in a clear, accessible style, "Booms and Busts" provides vital insight and perspective for students, teachers, librarians, and the general public - anyone interested in understanding the historical precedents, causes, and effects of the global economic crisis. Special features include a chronology of major booms and busts through history, a glossary of economic terms, a guide to further research, an appendix of primary documents, a topic finder, and a comprehensive index. It features 1,050 pages; three volumes; 8-1/2" X 11"; topic finder; photos; chronology; glossary; primary documents; bibliography; and, index.

Ulrich F. Zwygart offers an essential insight to the financial crisis that provides ample food for thought. He criticizes homo oeconomicus, the model of individual rationality, and contrasts it with the ideal of critical reflective rationality. This is about reason-based thinking, that involves a limitation of one's own activities and the evaluation of the subsequent cost of decisions. The author introduces twelve famous managers from the financial services, such as Richard Fuld, Fred Goodwin, Jon Corzine and Marcel Ospel, analyzes their actions based on neurological findings, social- and cultural-science, psychological and economic insights and describes conflicting challenges such as egomania, eroticism, experiences, emotions, one-dimensionality, successes, agents and rapture. Subsequently he raises the question of responsibility: Who is accountable for the development of top managers and how can ethical conduct be implemented in the field of management?