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The Billionaire's Apprentice: The Rise of The Indian-American Elite and The Fall of The Galleon Hedge Fund
Just as WASPs, Irish-Catholics and Our Crowd Jews once made the ascent from immigrants to powerbrokers, it is now the Indian-American's turn. Citigroup, PepsiCo and Mastercard are just a handful of the Fortune 500 companies led by a group known as the "Twice Blessed." Yet little is known about how these Indian emigres (and children of emigres) rose through the ranks. Until now... The collapse of the Galleon Group--a hedge fund that managed more than $7 billion in assets--from criminal charges of insider trading was a sensational case that pitted prosecutor Preet Bharara, himself the son of Indian immigrants, against the best and brightest of the South Asian business community. At the center of the case was self-described King of Kings, Galleon's founder Raj Rajaratnam, a Sri-Lankan-born, Wharton-educated billionaire. But the most shocking allegation was that the éminence grise of Indian business, Rajat Gupta, was Rajaratnam's accomplice and mole. If not for Gupta's nose-to-the-grindstone rise to head up McKinsey & Co and a position on the Goldman Sachs board, men like Rajaratnam would have never made it to the top of America's moneyed elite. Author Anita Raghavan criss-crosses the globe from Wall Street boardrooms to Delhi's Indian Institute of Technology as she uncovers the secrets of this subculture--an incredible tale of triumph, temptation and tragedy.
513 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 4, 2013
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November 11, 2016
"Barbarians" summed up the junk bond era (and remains my favorite business book ever), "When Genius Failed" summed up the bondarb era. A movie (Startup.com) actually summed up the Internet era. "The Smartest Guys in the Room" (which, shame on me, I've yet to read) summed up the creative accounting era.
While we're waiting for somebody more focused and less confused than David Stockman to pick up on his tremendous ideas and sum up the causes of the ongoing financial crisis, Anita Raghavan comes in and tells us the tale of how the US Government finally got its act together and started locking up the insiders who we've always suspected creamed all the profits out of the stock market, amassing fortunes that make Michael Milken look like the enthusiastic amateur he was when it came to insider dealing.
I have no doubt that one day we'll read about SAC Capital, but for now Steve Cohen is sitting on USD 8 billion p.a. and we really don't know how his story will end. Until he's had his day in court, if he ever does, indeed, we must presume him innocent; that's how we roll.
But there's no need to wait. I don't see anybody topping this breath-taking account . The Millionaire's Apprentice sets a very high bar. The author has conducted deep research into the characters and the events, and this shows. She sat in court, she listened to the tapes, she listened to all views and I'd be extremely surprised if one fact in the entire book is wrong. When there's doubt, besides, the author presents both sides, never shying away from saying how she thinks it went.
More than that, this would be a fantastic book even if it was fiction. You get character development here. There's a plot that moves quickly. There are tons of threads that get woven together. The author has evidently left loads of stuff out (duh!), but there's just enough there to make you know there's more. This is a very fine line to walk. Any more and you'd really lose count of the names and roles and angles. Any less and you'd feel short changed. So very often I'd find myself thinking "who's this Goel guy again?" and then immediately "oh yeah, he's the guy at Intel," for example. The key point is she never lost me, this really read like a novel.
Except of course it's very much a piece of journalism. An exquisite piece of journalism, at that.
"So where's the fifth star, Athan, boy?"
Ah, yes. I don't buy at all that this book tells the story of the Indian diaspora. The author thinks she's doing two things here. First, telling us a story about insider dealing and second telling us about the "twice blessed" generation of Indian Americans. If I was one of them, I'd be furious. In my view she holds her own people to a crazily high standard here and kind of acts like an uninvited judge and jury on millions of her own.
What do I care? I'm from Greece, not India.
Well, this book purports to tell us about two things, including on its cover. The fact that it does such an incomplete job of one of the two tasks the author assigned to herself has to be a failure.
More to the point, I think the author fails in another respect. By being "plus royaliste que le roi" when it comes to judging one of her own, I think she misses out on something rather big: Rajat Gupta probably acted 100% in line with other people in his position. Yes, maybe he did not notice that the wind had started blowing from a different direction. But if you ask me, by dint of being on the wrong side of the first ever incidence of wiretapping, the poor fellow just got very unlucky. Period. He ain't a stain on all Indian Americans.
Finally, a point of order. The basic thing in a Greek tragedy is at some juncture you get presented with a choice. A choice where you're damned if you do and damned if you don't. This is the "tragic" choice. You make that choice and a bunch of inevitable consequences follow and you face them with dignity or with no dignity, everybody dies in the last scene and then we all go home.
These fellows never crossed any type of Rubicon the way I see it. They got to where they got by sailing at the appropriate-for-the-time angle toward the wind, but failed to notice when the weather changed. The world changed, not them. And amen to that, of course.
But I digress. Buy the book.
While we're waiting for somebody more focused and less confused than David Stockman to pick up on his tremendous ideas and sum up the causes of the ongoing financial crisis, Anita Raghavan comes in and tells us the tale of how the US Government finally got its act together and started locking up the insiders who we've always suspected creamed all the profits out of the stock market, amassing fortunes that make Michael Milken look like the enthusiastic amateur he was when it came to insider dealing.
I have no doubt that one day we'll read about SAC Capital, but for now Steve Cohen is sitting on USD 8 billion p.a. and we really don't know how his story will end. Until he's had his day in court, if he ever does, indeed, we must presume him innocent; that's how we roll.
But there's no need to wait. I don't see anybody topping this breath-taking account . The Millionaire's Apprentice sets a very high bar. The author has conducted deep research into the characters and the events, and this shows. She sat in court, she listened to the tapes, she listened to all views and I'd be extremely surprised if one fact in the entire book is wrong. When there's doubt, besides, the author presents both sides, never shying away from saying how she thinks it went.
More than that, this would be a fantastic book even if it was fiction. You get character development here. There's a plot that moves quickly. There are tons of threads that get woven together. The author has evidently left loads of stuff out (duh!), but there's just enough there to make you know there's more. This is a very fine line to walk. Any more and you'd really lose count of the names and roles and angles. Any less and you'd feel short changed. So very often I'd find myself thinking "who's this Goel guy again?" and then immediately "oh yeah, he's the guy at Intel," for example. The key point is she never lost me, this really read like a novel.
Except of course it's very much a piece of journalism. An exquisite piece of journalism, at that.
"So where's the fifth star, Athan, boy?"
Ah, yes. I don't buy at all that this book tells the story of the Indian diaspora. The author thinks she's doing two things here. First, telling us a story about insider dealing and second telling us about the "twice blessed" generation of Indian Americans. If I was one of them, I'd be furious. In my view she holds her own people to a crazily high standard here and kind of acts like an uninvited judge and jury on millions of her own.
What do I care? I'm from Greece, not India.
Well, this book purports to tell us about two things, including on its cover. The fact that it does such an incomplete job of one of the two tasks the author assigned to herself has to be a failure.
More to the point, I think the author fails in another respect. By being "plus royaliste que le roi" when it comes to judging one of her own, I think she misses out on something rather big: Rajat Gupta probably acted 100% in line with other people in his position. Yes, maybe he did not notice that the wind had started blowing from a different direction. But if you ask me, by dint of being on the wrong side of the first ever incidence of wiretapping, the poor fellow just got very unlucky. Period. He ain't a stain on all Indian Americans.
Finally, a point of order. The basic thing in a Greek tragedy is at some juncture you get presented with a choice. A choice where you're damned if you do and damned if you don't. This is the "tragic" choice. You make that choice and a bunch of inevitable consequences follow and you face them with dignity or with no dignity, everybody dies in the last scene and then we all go home.
These fellows never crossed any type of Rubicon the way I see it. They got to where they got by sailing at the appropriate-for-the-time angle toward the wind, but failed to notice when the weather changed. The world changed, not them. And amen to that, of course.
But I digress. Buy the book.
March 1, 2015
I had been wanting to read The Billionaire’s Apprentice for quite a long time. Like many others, I, too, was shocked when the news of Rajat Gupta’s conviction in insider trading was announced by a US Court. What only added fuel to the fire was the fact that two Indian immigrants Preet Bharara and Sanjay Wadhwa were behind the conviction.
This is the first book on an insider trading case written with the aid of nearly fifty wiretapped calls. The author Anita Raghavan takes us behind the scenes of the entire insider trading saga – right from the childhood days of Rajat Gupta in Kolkata and New Delhi to his initial days at Harvard and his entry into McKinsey. His success as indicated by him being appointed the managing director of McKinsey three times is juxtaposed with his eventual fall when he fell prey to Raj Rajaratnam’s sneaky association.
As the book tells us, Rajat Gupta was quite a hotshot guy – he was close to Mukesh Ambani, head of Reliance Industries and was one of the few Indian executives who could get Dr. Manmohan Singh on the phone at short notice.
The book mentions the insider trading case in great detail including the various persons involved, their modus operandi, the rise and fall of tech industry and their stocks. The way the prosecution went about building the case going through tons of documents to piece together the evidence makes for interesting reading, especially for financial junkies like me.
September 23, 2008 turned out to be a red letter day for Rajat Gupta for that was the day the Goldman Sachs had its board meeting information about which was passed on by Gupta to Rajaratnam just before the stock markets closed. While we may wonder what led Gupta to keep on passing sensitive information, as respected and wealthy as he was, his actions may be explained perhaps by his quote during his speech at Columbia University in April-2004, “I think money is very seductive. However much you say you will not fall into the trap of it, you do fall into the trap of it.”
The details of the trial are also quite interesting with the author bringing out Gupta's humane side and his family's reactions quite skillfully. According to Bharara, his rationale behind going after people involved in insider trading was that, “People with lots of money were trying to game the system.” Judge Rakoff disallowed testimony on Gupta's philanthropic plans, saying, “The annals of white-collar crime in this district are filled with people who wanted to make themselves respected, powerful members of society by giving to charity.”
The book is a must-read for those who are interested in reading about financial white-collar crimes. It is also a must-read to understand what made a person like Rajat Gupta, probably one of the most revered and influential Indian-Americans in the world, indulge in insider trading. When Rajaratnam was convicted, you do not feel bad or surprised because his persona was such. But Gupta exuded a different personality and, thus, his conviction affected everybody. The book stays with you long after you have finished reading it; I went on to read much more about the case and Gupta.
Random snippets I found interesting in the book about Rajat Gupta :)
1. Rajat Gupta's wife Anita Mattoo was the only girl in a graduating class of 250 at IIT-Delhi in 1968.
2. Subramanian Swamy, a well-known Indian politician, taught Rajat Gupta economics at IIT-Delhi
3. Rajat Gupta was one of the youngest members of the Harvard Business School class of 1973 and one of three from India.
Random snippets I found interesting in the book that have absolutely nothing to do with Rajat Gupta :)
1. Golf arrived in Calcutta in 1829, some sixty years before it reached New York.
2. Governor-General William Bentinck introduced English as the official language for Indian higher education, a move that would have momentous consequences a hundred years later.
3. Narayana Murthy's son could not get into IIT to study computer science so he had to go to his safety school, Cornell University.
4. McKinsey has its roots in a company founded in 1926 by James O. McKinsey, a certified public accountant and University of Chicago professor.
References to literature in the book:
1. Rajat Gupta's most remembered drama performance at IIT-Delhi was his role in Jean-Paul Sartre's searing existential drama Men Without Shadows.
2. Rajat and his wife Anita acted together in a Hindi adaptation of the Moliere play The Miser.
3. On his study table at Harvard, Gupta kept a tattered piece of paper which read, “But I have promises to keep and miles to go before I sleep – Robert Frost.”
4. The Guptas named their first daughter Geetanjali after the Nobel Prize-winning epic written by the Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore.
Anita Raghavan's mother came to the United States in 1959 for an internship at the Brooklyn Public Library.
Additional reading for those interested :)
http://sree.net/stories/bt-gupta.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aAFc...
http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1000087...
Note: I was given a review copy of this book by the publisher Hachette India.
This review first appeared on my blog www.pallosworld.blogspot.in.
This is the first book on an insider trading case written with the aid of nearly fifty wiretapped calls. The author Anita Raghavan takes us behind the scenes of the entire insider trading saga – right from the childhood days of Rajat Gupta in Kolkata and New Delhi to his initial days at Harvard and his entry into McKinsey. His success as indicated by him being appointed the managing director of McKinsey three times is juxtaposed with his eventual fall when he fell prey to Raj Rajaratnam’s sneaky association.
As the book tells us, Rajat Gupta was quite a hotshot guy – he was close to Mukesh Ambani, head of Reliance Industries and was one of the few Indian executives who could get Dr. Manmohan Singh on the phone at short notice.
The book mentions the insider trading case in great detail including the various persons involved, their modus operandi, the rise and fall of tech industry and their stocks. The way the prosecution went about building the case going through tons of documents to piece together the evidence makes for interesting reading, especially for financial junkies like me.
September 23, 2008 turned out to be a red letter day for Rajat Gupta for that was the day the Goldman Sachs had its board meeting information about which was passed on by Gupta to Rajaratnam just before the stock markets closed. While we may wonder what led Gupta to keep on passing sensitive information, as respected and wealthy as he was, his actions may be explained perhaps by his quote during his speech at Columbia University in April-2004, “I think money is very seductive. However much you say you will not fall into the trap of it, you do fall into the trap of it.”
The details of the trial are also quite interesting with the author bringing out Gupta's humane side and his family's reactions quite skillfully. According to Bharara, his rationale behind going after people involved in insider trading was that, “People with lots of money were trying to game the system.” Judge Rakoff disallowed testimony on Gupta's philanthropic plans, saying, “The annals of white-collar crime in this district are filled with people who wanted to make themselves respected, powerful members of society by giving to charity.”
The book is a must-read for those who are interested in reading about financial white-collar crimes. It is also a must-read to understand what made a person like Rajat Gupta, probably one of the most revered and influential Indian-Americans in the world, indulge in insider trading. When Rajaratnam was convicted, you do not feel bad or surprised because his persona was such. But Gupta exuded a different personality and, thus, his conviction affected everybody. The book stays with you long after you have finished reading it; I went on to read much more about the case and Gupta.
Random snippets I found interesting in the book about Rajat Gupta :)
1. Rajat Gupta's wife Anita Mattoo was the only girl in a graduating class of 250 at IIT-Delhi in 1968.
2. Subramanian Swamy, a well-known Indian politician, taught Rajat Gupta economics at IIT-Delhi
3. Rajat Gupta was one of the youngest members of the Harvard Business School class of 1973 and one of three from India.
Random snippets I found interesting in the book that have absolutely nothing to do with Rajat Gupta :)
1. Golf arrived in Calcutta in 1829, some sixty years before it reached New York.
2. Governor-General William Bentinck introduced English as the official language for Indian higher education, a move that would have momentous consequences a hundred years later.
3. Narayana Murthy's son could not get into IIT to study computer science so he had to go to his safety school, Cornell University.
4. McKinsey has its roots in a company founded in 1926 by James O. McKinsey, a certified public accountant and University of Chicago professor.
References to literature in the book:
1. Rajat Gupta's most remembered drama performance at IIT-Delhi was his role in Jean-Paul Sartre's searing existential drama Men Without Shadows.
2. Rajat and his wife Anita acted together in a Hindi adaptation of the Moliere play The Miser.
3. On his study table at Harvard, Gupta kept a tattered piece of paper which read, “But I have promises to keep and miles to go before I sleep – Robert Frost.”
4. The Guptas named their first daughter Geetanjali after the Nobel Prize-winning epic written by the Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore.
Anita Raghavan's mother came to the United States in 1959 for an internship at the Brooklyn Public Library.
Additional reading for those interested :)
http://sree.net/stories/bt-gupta.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aAFc...
http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1000087...
Note: I was given a review copy of this book by the publisher Hachette India.
This review first appeared on my blog www.pallosworld.blogspot.in.
June 13, 2013
I couldn't put this book down as I found the subject personally compelling. However, I disagreed with a few conclusions the author made, mainly that the South Asian diaspora held Rajat Gupta in such high regard and that his demise has tarnished Indian-American success in the U.S. I believe more folks know about Sanjay Gupta than Rajat Gupta.
June 20, 2019
The one topic that this book stressed upon was how much of a presence greed holds in the life of human beings. History (real and fictional) tells us of the lives of men and women who spent their entire lives chasing the ephemeral trappings of wealth and power, never to be satisfied with whatever they received. There are countless tales how greed has annihilated the lives of many a human being and yet more keep jumping on to the bandwagon. Anita Raghavan’s book is a comprehensive look at the Galleon insider trading case from 2012 through multiple angles – all of which give the reader varied lenses to view human behaviour and specially human greed.
The first aspect are a couple of rags to riches stories wherein we become acquainted with Rajat Gupta and Raj Rajaratnam, both of whom were self-made men in their own chosen fields. While Rajaratnam poured all his vibrant energy and hard toil into building the Galleon hedge fund, Gupta (who was many years his senior) moved across the corporate boardrooms of the United States as he headed McKinsey consulting. Neither of these men had it easy in their lives and they worked like maniacs to become what they were. Rajaratnam and Gupta though were as different as chalk and cheese. Gupta was a quiet, refined and composed man whose credibility and work ethics were the cornerstones on which he built his McKinsey career. He ended up being the MD for McKinsey (the first Indian to hold that role) for three consecutive terms. A global citizen who kowtowed with luminaries and world leaders, Gupta was a beacon for every Indian of that time who wanted to aspire to greatness outside the nation. Rajaratnam was brash, loud, shrewd and incredibly competent at his job. The author gives us a portrait of a man who could go to any length to win in the share market. If ends justify the means, then Rajaratnam was the King of his borough.
The second aspect of the story is about the rise to prominence of the South Asians in the United States. People like Gupta and Vinod Khosla were the pioneers of Indian immigration to the US and made their mark which thousands of others would later follow. Even in today’s world where large corporations are headed by Indian CEO’s, the legacy created by Gupta can be felt on no uncertain terms.
Greed is the third aspect which completely overturns the first point which I highlighted above. Gupta gets caught up in an internal trading scandal which has Rajaratnam buried neck deep in it. The public humiliation was something that is a complete undoing of the entire reputation that Gupta had built over many decades. By the time the conviction on the case is announced, Gupta’s reputation is in tatters and Rajaratnam is incarcerated. While Rajaratnam knew fully well what he was getting into, it never became clear to me (and the author wasn’t very forthcoming either) on what Gupta seemed to think of his actions and why he did what he did. Of late I have been seeing his autobiography ‘Mind Without Fear’ in a few bookshops and that was my starting point of wanting to read more about this topic.
The book is well researched, evenly balanced and chronologically arranged. At the risk of sounding cliché, it can be said that it easily matches the pace of a thriller. The SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) investigation into the whole case and the subsequent legal trial is captured with depth, detail and sans an ounce of extra fat.
An immensely readable book on one of the most prominent financial scandals of recent times.
The first aspect are a couple of rags to riches stories wherein we become acquainted with Rajat Gupta and Raj Rajaratnam, both of whom were self-made men in their own chosen fields. While Rajaratnam poured all his vibrant energy and hard toil into building the Galleon hedge fund, Gupta (who was many years his senior) moved across the corporate boardrooms of the United States as he headed McKinsey consulting. Neither of these men had it easy in their lives and they worked like maniacs to become what they were. Rajaratnam and Gupta though were as different as chalk and cheese. Gupta was a quiet, refined and composed man whose credibility and work ethics were the cornerstones on which he built his McKinsey career. He ended up being the MD for McKinsey (the first Indian to hold that role) for three consecutive terms. A global citizen who kowtowed with luminaries and world leaders, Gupta was a beacon for every Indian of that time who wanted to aspire to greatness outside the nation. Rajaratnam was brash, loud, shrewd and incredibly competent at his job. The author gives us a portrait of a man who could go to any length to win in the share market. If ends justify the means, then Rajaratnam was the King of his borough.
The second aspect of the story is about the rise to prominence of the South Asians in the United States. People like Gupta and Vinod Khosla were the pioneers of Indian immigration to the US and made their mark which thousands of others would later follow. Even in today’s world where large corporations are headed by Indian CEO’s, the legacy created by Gupta can be felt on no uncertain terms.
Greed is the third aspect which completely overturns the first point which I highlighted above. Gupta gets caught up in an internal trading scandal which has Rajaratnam buried neck deep in it. The public humiliation was something that is a complete undoing of the entire reputation that Gupta had built over many decades. By the time the conviction on the case is announced, Gupta’s reputation is in tatters and Rajaratnam is incarcerated. While Rajaratnam knew fully well what he was getting into, it never became clear to me (and the author wasn’t very forthcoming either) on what Gupta seemed to think of his actions and why he did what he did. Of late I have been seeing his autobiography ‘Mind Without Fear’ in a few bookshops and that was my starting point of wanting to read more about this topic.
The book is well researched, evenly balanced and chronologically arranged. At the risk of sounding cliché, it can be said that it easily matches the pace of a thriller. The SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) investigation into the whole case and the subsequent legal trial is captured with depth, detail and sans an ounce of extra fat.
An immensely readable book on one of the most prominent financial scandals of recent times.
June 21, 2022
This is a fabulous account of the insider trading scandal which rocked America, the South Asian diaspora in the US, and Indians who looked upto Rajat Gupta as an icon who had achieved fame and reputation in the business world heading one of the big four consultancy firms, McKinsey & Co. It chronicles the fall from grace of Rajat Gupta and Raj Rajarathnam from the top echolons of power in their respective fields along with other Indian immigrants, Anil Kumar (one of the McKinsey partners) and Rumy Khan (an associate of Rajarathnam). Another glaring fact is that all characters (prosecutors and defendants) are Indians / South Asians and extremely successful in their respective professions. Indian immigrants are especially known for their hard work and success across the world and are a known stickler for being on the right side of the law. However, this scandal rocked the foundation of this very notion and tarnished the reputation of the successful Indian diaspora.
The author has done some great research on this book. She has meticulously detailed the circumstances under which both the personalities have been convicted even chronicling the conversations that took place between all the characters. I was pleasantly surprised to see the author has taken pains to chronicle the family history and background of every person mentioned in the book. The book is very engaging and tautly written. Hope Anita Raghavan writes another engaging one.
The author has done some great research on this book. She has meticulously detailed the circumstances under which both the personalities have been convicted even chronicling the conversations that took place between all the characters. I was pleasantly surprised to see the author has taken pains to chronicle the family history and background of every person mentioned in the book. The book is very engaging and tautly written. Hope Anita Raghavan writes another engaging one.
October 14, 2013
With a fast paced narrative, author has covered the entire investigation as well as personal profile of all the key players involved in Galleon trial. At the end, the reader is left with a mixed feeling. There are reasons to be proud of the American meritocracy that makes it possible for Indian American immigrants to do so well. On the other hand, there is the sad truth that moral failings are fairly common within the successful rich classes. Of course, Rajat Gupta's fall from grace is the most depressing aspect and the author herself seems tormented between her respect for him and the unfortunate reality...
A good read - highly recommended.
A good read - highly recommended.
November 11, 2020
The advantage of reading books about high-profile cases of white collar-crime several years after publication (2013, I believe) is that you can access updates on the main players current status and see where their lives are today: Gupta the would-be pillar of the respectable corporate world, Rajaratnam the reckless high-flier, and Kumar, the smarty-pants boy scout caught with his hand in the cookie jar. It's a bit like getting a giant bonus epilogue, and that's always fun.
The author has done a ton of research for this book, and the threads are woven together to tell a bigger story, that of the "twice-blessed" immigrant Indian (and other South Asian) elite in the U.S. It may or may not be a spectacularly convincing analysis (I'll leave that to those in-the-know) but as an outsider I found the cultural and historical aspects interesting.
The most salient legal aspect of this case, I gathered, was the initiation of the use of wiretaps by prosecutors investigating insider trading cases. Apparently, this was not really a thing back then for these crimes: In 2008, US judges approved 1,891 phone intercepts; nearly 1,600 were for drug cases. Just 12 were for conspiracy, one of the most common charges filed against white-collar defendants. So as long as there wasn't a tangible paper, e-mail or text trail of information flow, the perpetrators must have felt comfortably immune on the phone. That said, some of the circumstantial evidence in Gupta's case was sufficiently damaging at trial without anyone recording explicitly incriminating exchanges.
Finally, a thought on insider trading: it's illegal because it gives an unfair edge to all the other traders, gamblers, and dabblers out there, sure. But all the big investment banks and hedge fund managers hire armies of analysts who make it their business to access and process the most pertinent information legally in order to make the best bets. How many casual traders can compete with that that artillery? The idea of a level playing field for all in the free market seems more like a cherished illusion than a realistic ideal. The line between a great tip and illegally shared knowledge is very thin indeed, and counting on the personal ethics of those standing to make or lose millions (billions!) seems incredibly naive. But I guess the SEC (like the referees at soccer matches who are supposed to have eyes in back of their heads) will continue to do the best they can in this cat and mouse game to at least keep some of the cheaters in line.
The author has done a ton of research for this book, and the threads are woven together to tell a bigger story, that of the "twice-blessed" immigrant Indian (and other South Asian) elite in the U.S. It may or may not be a spectacularly convincing analysis (I'll leave that to those in-the-know) but as an outsider I found the cultural and historical aspects interesting.
The most salient legal aspect of this case, I gathered, was the initiation of the use of wiretaps by prosecutors investigating insider trading cases. Apparently, this was not really a thing back then for these crimes: In 2008, US judges approved 1,891 phone intercepts; nearly 1,600 were for drug cases. Just 12 were for conspiracy, one of the most common charges filed against white-collar defendants. So as long as there wasn't a tangible paper, e-mail or text trail of information flow, the perpetrators must have felt comfortably immune on the phone. That said, some of the circumstantial evidence in Gupta's case was sufficiently damaging at trial without anyone recording explicitly incriminating exchanges.
Finally, a thought on insider trading: it's illegal because it gives an unfair edge to all the other traders, gamblers, and dabblers out there, sure. But all the big investment banks and hedge fund managers hire armies of analysts who make it their business to access and process the most pertinent information legally in order to make the best bets. How many casual traders can compete with that that artillery? The idea of a level playing field for all in the free market seems more like a cherished illusion than a realistic ideal. The line between a great tip and illegally shared knowledge is very thin indeed, and counting on the personal ethics of those standing to make or lose millions (billions!) seems incredibly naive. But I guess the SEC (like the referees at soccer matches who are supposed to have eyes in back of their heads) will continue to do the best they can in this cat and mouse game to at least keep some of the cheaters in line.
June 10, 2013
My review of this book which was posted onto the Huffington Post.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sanjay-...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sanjay-...
May 21, 2020
Exceptional book. One of the very best I have read in recent times. It captures the failings of some of the most successful minds from India in recent years, who captured United States by storm and were at the pinnacles of two high pedigree job roles: consulting and investing respectively.
It paints a great picture of these individuals, drawing from their histories, talking about their aspirations, their whims and fancies and how, despite all the success they had, they got sucked into the vortex of insider trading.
Anita Raghavan has done a fantastic job at unravelling the lives of the classical Type A Indian elite: IIT graduates going to ivy league business schools and has exposed how greed, desire for influence and intense competitiveness drive brilliant minded people to dig their own graves.
It paints a great picture of these individuals, drawing from their histories, talking about their aspirations, their whims and fancies and how, despite all the success they had, they got sucked into the vortex of insider trading.
Anita Raghavan has done a fantastic job at unravelling the lives of the classical Type A Indian elite: IIT graduates going to ivy league business schools and has exposed how greed, desire for influence and intense competitiveness drive brilliant minded people to dig their own graves.
April 8, 2018
Full review and highlights at https://books.max-nova.com/billionaires-apprentice
In college, I remember watching the collapse of the Galleon Group, one of the world's largest hedge funds, but I didn't appreciate the unique place that Galleon held within the Indian American community. "The Billionaire's Apprentice" details the Galleon Group insider trading scandal of 2009 and the central role that the Indian American immigrants played on both sides of the case. Raghavan explains how the "twice-blessed" wave of Indian immigrants to America in the 1970's hustled their way to positions of wealth and power, sometimes cutting corners along the way. Raghavan's book traces the rise and fall of Rajat Gupta, the first Indian head of the McKinsey & Co. consulting firm. Climbing to the highest levels of establishment influence and power (including a seat on the board of Goldman Sachs), Gupta ended his career in disgrace after becoming embroiled in the Galleon Group insider trading scandal. He served time in federal prison with his co-conspirator and fellow South Asian Raj Rajaratnam (see Raghavan's article in the NYT about their awkward prison meetings).
Raghavan portrays Gupta as hard-working, philanthropic, corporate climber who lost his way as he aspired to ever-higher levels of financial success. Galleon founder Rajaratnam comes off as much sleazier character, the operator of a vast network of South Asians at tech companies and hedge funds who supplied him with a trove of insider information. Raghavan connects the dots between these two men and the many other players in the interconnected web of this case, but some things still don't add up. As Raghavan notes:
Overall, "The Billionaire's Apprentice" was a nice introduction to the world of insider trading and white-collar crime. This book was part of my 2018 reading theme on "Crime and Punishment."
In college, I remember watching the collapse of the Galleon Group, one of the world's largest hedge funds, but I didn't appreciate the unique place that Galleon held within the Indian American community. "The Billionaire's Apprentice" details the Galleon Group insider trading scandal of 2009 and the central role that the Indian American immigrants played on both sides of the case. Raghavan explains how the "twice-blessed" wave of Indian immigrants to America in the 1970's hustled their way to positions of wealth and power, sometimes cutting corners along the way. Raghavan's book traces the rise and fall of Rajat Gupta, the first Indian head of the McKinsey & Co. consulting firm. Climbing to the highest levels of establishment influence and power (including a seat on the board of Goldman Sachs), Gupta ended his career in disgrace after becoming embroiled in the Galleon Group insider trading scandal. He served time in federal prison with his co-conspirator and fellow South Asian Raj Rajaratnam (see Raghavan's article in the NYT about their awkward prison meetings).
Raghavan portrays Gupta as hard-working, philanthropic, corporate climber who lost his way as he aspired to ever-higher levels of financial success. Galleon founder Rajaratnam comes off as much sleazier character, the operator of a vast network of South Asians at tech companies and hedge funds who supplied him with a trove of insider information. Raghavan connects the dots between these two men and the many other players in the interconnected web of this case, but some things still don't add up. As Raghavan notes:
In the Galleon case, for instance, the government alleged that Rajaratnam pocketed as much as $75 million from his illegal trades. Compared to Rajaratnam’s net worth of $1.3 billion at one time, the sum pales.If Rajaratnam was already making so much money, what could have possibly justified the risk of his insider trading activity? There seem to be only two explanations. Either Rajaratnam was a pathological gambler, or the majority of Galleon was built on insider information and the government only uncovered a tiny portion of it. Unfortunately, Raghavan never addresses this question.
Overall, "The Billionaire's Apprentice" was a nice introduction to the world of insider trading and white-collar crime. This book was part of my 2018 reading theme on "Crime and Punishment."
August 25, 2014
Great research and details that have been gathered meticulously and with rigor. It must have taken a lot of time and effort. The author must be commended for it.
Unfortunately a reportorial style of writing, coupled with jumping backwards and forwards in time, makes awkward reading. After a few chapters, I abandoned all attempts to keep track of the rapidly changing time frames.
One confession: I managed to get through this book only on the third attempt. The initial few chapters that deal with Gupta's past, his pre-Galleon days, and the author's version of India & its culture, defeated me twice. On the third attempt, I skipped several of those parts and got to the meat of the story, where it became interesting. The initial chapters are perhaps meant for non-Indians. Subsequently, I skipped life histories of some other characters, and focused on the crimes and their modus operandi.
The rock star (if the term could be applied to such an infamous person) is Rajaratnam, who seems to have been a consummate manipulator. Gupta & Kumar seem to have been drawn in by avarice and ambition that one sees so often at senior levels in the corporate world. Gupta'd desire for money and creature comforts seems to have done him in. One has come across several such persons in corporate India - successful person whose avarice is limitless.
In summary, it's a good account of the scam (probably the best around) that requires some patience and judicious skipping.
Unfortunately a reportorial style of writing, coupled with jumping backwards and forwards in time, makes awkward reading. After a few chapters, I abandoned all attempts to keep track of the rapidly changing time frames.
One confession: I managed to get through this book only on the third attempt. The initial few chapters that deal with Gupta's past, his pre-Galleon days, and the author's version of India & its culture, defeated me twice. On the third attempt, I skipped several of those parts and got to the meat of the story, where it became interesting. The initial chapters are perhaps meant for non-Indians. Subsequently, I skipped life histories of some other characters, and focused on the crimes and their modus operandi.
The rock star (if the term could be applied to such an infamous person) is Rajaratnam, who seems to have been a consummate manipulator. Gupta & Kumar seem to have been drawn in by avarice and ambition that one sees so often at senior levels in the corporate world. Gupta'd desire for money and creature comforts seems to have done him in. One has come across several such persons in corporate India - successful person whose avarice is limitless.
In summary, it's a good account of the scam (probably the best around) that requires some patience and judicious skipping.
February 19, 2015
This book fits mostly into the business thriller category. I read the first half in a day and found it completely absorbing. The author did an exceptional job of chronicling the early rise of South Asians in the U.S. in the 70s and 80s and of detailing the personal stories of the main subjects.
The main subjects make for interesting reading. All are very bright and industrious and all have very different personalities and character traits. It was interesting to see how a dominant personality could (temporarily) elevate Rajaratnam to such heights and to allow him to hold sway over others. Gupta came across as such a terrific and decent man (until he didn’t seem that way anymore).
Some things I didn’t love so much about the book were the comments by former McKinsey consultant, Enron exec and felon Jeffrey Skilling as background for Rajat Gupta’s career at McKinsey. There had to have been someone else from McKinsey who could have provided similar insights. Also, there were a few spots in the book that seemed to have some puzzling gaps. Nothing major and it could have been my lack of comprehension but a few segments seemed to lack coherence. Lastly, the legal aspects at the end of the book were just too detailed and bogged the story down.
The main subjects make for interesting reading. All are very bright and industrious and all have very different personalities and character traits. It was interesting to see how a dominant personality could (temporarily) elevate Rajaratnam to such heights and to allow him to hold sway over others. Gupta came across as such a terrific and decent man (until he didn’t seem that way anymore).
Some things I didn’t love so much about the book were the comments by former McKinsey consultant, Enron exec and felon Jeffrey Skilling as background for Rajat Gupta’s career at McKinsey. There had to have been someone else from McKinsey who could have provided similar insights. Also, there were a few spots in the book that seemed to have some puzzling gaps. Nothing major and it could have been my lack of comprehension but a few segments seemed to lack coherence. Lastly, the legal aspects at the end of the book were just too detailed and bogged the story down.
June 10, 2013
What a fascinating book! Anita Raghavan weaves together two contrasting -- but inextricably linked -- stories with great skill. The first is an upbeat, panoramic story of ambitious strivers in India and Sri Lanka, coming to the United States in search of fortune and fame. Her descriptions and character insights in this odyssey are just wonderful. We start in Mumbai, Kolkata and a dozen other cities, getting to know the full family stories of these high achievers. We get inside the ultra-intense culture of the IIT launch pad. And then it's off to New York, Silicon Valley and many other places where these achievers start to make it as bankers, tech executives, lawyers and financiers.
But there's a more disturbing story playing out, too. Some members of this cohort are infected with insecurities or greed that lead them to start cheating. They pass along stock tips to one another. Before long, some are leading preposterous secret lives, where they shuttle ill-gotten gains into offshore accounts and place illicit phone calls to one another using cell phones registered in their gardeners' names.
As a giant collision course takes shape, Raghavan brings to life the different motivations and manners of her two great characters: billionaire hedge fund operator Raj Rajaratnam ... and his most compromised informant, former McKinsey & Co. managing director Rajat Gupta. It's an alliance fused in hell. It's one that will send both men to prison. And her portrayal of how both men ruined their careers is spellbinding.
Yet guess who the chief prosecutor is, who brings all of this wrong-doing to justice? It's another Indian immigrant, Preet Bhahara, with his own coming-of-age story. Born in the Punjab, he came to America as a small child and emerged as valedictorian of his New Jersey high school and a summa cum laude graduate of Harvard.
For one generation, the dream dies. For the next generation, the dream springs to life, more vivid than ever. This is a big-scale drama that's been hidden in plain sight the past few decades. Bravo to Anita Raghavan for bringing it all to life.
But there's a more disturbing story playing out, too. Some members of this cohort are infected with insecurities or greed that lead them to start cheating. They pass along stock tips to one another. Before long, some are leading preposterous secret lives, where they shuttle ill-gotten gains into offshore accounts and place illicit phone calls to one another using cell phones registered in their gardeners' names.
As a giant collision course takes shape, Raghavan brings to life the different motivations and manners of her two great characters: billionaire hedge fund operator Raj Rajaratnam ... and his most compromised informant, former McKinsey & Co. managing director Rajat Gupta. It's an alliance fused in hell. It's one that will send both men to prison. And her portrayal of how both men ruined their careers is spellbinding.
Yet guess who the chief prosecutor is, who brings all of this wrong-doing to justice? It's another Indian immigrant, Preet Bhahara, with his own coming-of-age story. Born in the Punjab, he came to America as a small child and emerged as valedictorian of his New Jersey high school and a summa cum laude graduate of Harvard.
For one generation, the dream dies. For the next generation, the dream springs to life, more vivid than ever. This is a big-scale drama that's been hidden in plain sight the past few decades. Bravo to Anita Raghavan for bringing it all to life.
August 24, 2013
The book covers nearly everything about the lead characters and, a few cameos. However, it attempts do so in sweeping style going back and forth to their origins and, trying to derive the motivation for "who they are, where they came from and why did they do what was done". It presents a good basis for a script but it makes for absolutely awkward reading. Add to this the fact that it doesn't break new ground. For anyone who has been following the Galleon case through various media, this book is a very neat single file summary of it. For those who are new to it, the book presents a breezy run through Gupta's origins and, thereafter builds out the specific parts of the case.
The chronology is often disturbed by the alternative time style. Recent events are juxtaposed with events from the past and, thus it is cinematic - flashbacks and present time. But not for standard reading. Plus there are elaborate explanatory aspects viz. "loose collared clothing called kurta" etc which make it a somewhat funny material to read. Especially if one is reading an edition marked for India.
The chronology is often disturbed by the alternative time style. Recent events are juxtaposed with events from the past and, thus it is cinematic - flashbacks and present time. But not for standard reading. Plus there are elaborate explanatory aspects viz. "loose collared clothing called kurta" etc which make it a somewhat funny material to read. Especially if one is reading an edition marked for India.
May 30, 2014
Ok So If you have no Idea about Investment banking, hedge funds, stock trading etc etc, then this book is not for you coz Anita, the Author hasn't mentioned the concepts of. Stock Trading or IB in the Introductory part. And 80% of this book has Banking & Trading Jargon which normal people won't understand. If you want to know the plot in 1 line..Here it is : Raj & Rajat involve themself in internal trading & get their ass busted. Yet I won't take the credit from the Author just cause of this fact. The Book should be weighted in Gold for all those who hv an inking to finance. The Research work put in by ANita is commmendable..She has literally mentioned the day to day life activities of Rajat & Ram, including the hotels the visited, the conferences they attended, what they had for dinner, how they cracked up the trading scenario etc etc. The pace of this book is too slow..which may not work for regular readers as anita tried to cram a lot in this Book. I won't be surprised if this book wins a few finance book awards
March 14, 2018
How the mighty fall!! In a gripping tale of power, money and ambition of a 'Twice Blessed' generation of South Asian immigrants, Anita Raghavan takes us through the events that led to fall of the Galleon Hedge Fund and perhaps the biggest securities fraud and insider trading case post 2008 meltdown.
The central characters in this tale emerge from very humble beginnings, driven by intellect and a drive to make some thing out of their lives in the land of opportunity. In their search for more, they stretch, bend and break the law.
More than anything else, for me, this book is a Greek tragedy of a fallen angel - Rajat Kumar Gupta, once an idol for the Indian-American community.
Read it, it goes like a suspense thriller! Great job Ms. Raghavan!
The central characters in this tale emerge from very humble beginnings, driven by intellect and a drive to make some thing out of their lives in the land of opportunity. In their search for more, they stretch, bend and break the law.
More than anything else, for me, this book is a Greek tragedy of a fallen angel - Rajat Kumar Gupta, once an idol for the Indian-American community.
Read it, it goes like a suspense thriller! Great job Ms. Raghavan!
December 28, 2014
I first saw this on The New York Times Best Books of 2013 list.I was looking to read a nonfiction book off of the NYT list and since I had enjoyed reading Michael Lewis’s The Big Short, I chose it. It is very well written and researched - it has extensive notes and documentation but it reads like a financial thriller. There are a lot of players and moving parts in the book in addition to lots of financial jargon and legalese so at first the book read extremely slowly but midway through the book really picks up and is well worth the initial effort.
February 21, 2014
Although the book focuses mostly on the two protagonists, the author's take on the rise of south Asians in the American elite is especially interesting. The author has made through research on many things she touched and that has given more depth to the plot. She made the plot crisp and interesting till the end and the way she reveals about the proceedings of the investigation has made it into a page-turner.
September 6, 2013
A fascinating read. I followed the Galleon case and trial, so was enthralled by this book. The story is a gripping one, and I couldn't put it down. I am not sure whether my Indian-American background made me like it more than someone else. Regardless, a great read. Makes you realize that greed is such a powerful human trait that it can entice even the most noble person.
January 7, 2015
Unputdownable!!!! Brilliant book on the famous insider trading case relating to the iconic Rajat Gupta and Raj Rajaratnam. Masterpiece of investigative journalism. Gives you a real insight into the rise of south asians diaspora in the american society and also a glimpse of the glamourous world of Wall Street.
April 21, 2018
I had lot of expectation while buying this book and was eager to know about white collar crime and its modus operandi. The writer has disappointed me. She has mostly dwelt on explaining the personality of various characters and how they progressed in their career. Only after completing 80% of the book the reader is taken to the trial and prosecution which is the crux of the plot.
July 23, 2013
Spectacular!
Written like a thriller.
Written like a thriller.
September 3, 2015
3.5 to 4 stars only because it is so painstakingly researched. Gets a bit boring in the middle, but overall a good, engrossing read on the Rajat Gupta insider trading scandal.
March 11, 2018
A riveting account of the Galleon Group hedge fund insider trading investigation and related trials set against the backdrop of the Indian diaspora in America.
May 26, 2019
Gordon Gekko told us 'Greed is good!' By the end of the movie though, he finds himself behind bars. Not all real world stories turn out righteous in this way. Unfortunately for hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam, his story did. The Galleon Hedge Fund scandal and the big names that it took down is still fresh in our minds for it was one of the most publicised and eventful insider trading cases that was brought to court. No matter in which year you pick up Anita Raghavan's The Billionaire's Apprentice, this story would seem fresh and you may even relate it to the times you live in, for man's greed is not going to end even with high-profile convictions.
Anita Raghavan narrates the entire drama that eventually took down Galleon Hedge Fund in a thoroughly professional and well-researched manner. She keeps her emotions out of it and uses her fortitude as a journalist to bring to light all the events that took place which ultimately led to such a wide-scale sensational scandal. Her book, however, develops a heart of its own because of the extra mile that she goes in learning more about the key players of this story, like Rajaratnam, the Mckinsey consultant Anil Kumar, the ever-present Roomy Khan, and of course, the former Mckinsey head Rajiv Gupta, to name a few. The first half of the book shifts in time, covering the present SEC investigation in one chapter, before moving to Rajiv Gupta's early years in India in the next, and so on that makes it an interesting style to read. Things really get gripping in the second half as the US government is trying to strengthen its case against a host of people and the story starts to feel like a thriller worthy of being showcased on the big screen.
But more importantly, the book teaches a valuable lesson on governance and integrity, of firms and individuals. How hard one can fall when you break someone's trust; how difficult it is to rebuild when your character itself is assailed. The book sheds some light on the otherwise dark methods used by some of those on Wall Street to get rich quickly. And it also helps in building the image of the US government and its investigating bodies who were relentless in their pursuit to apprehend those who had done wrong. It teaches to those who are willing to listen, that crossing the line and dipping your hands in something illegal will hurt you bad someday; maybe not today or tomorrow, but once the law catches up with you.. it would be too late...
Anita Raghavan narrates the entire drama that eventually took down Galleon Hedge Fund in a thoroughly professional and well-researched manner. She keeps her emotions out of it and uses her fortitude as a journalist to bring to light all the events that took place which ultimately led to such a wide-scale sensational scandal. Her book, however, develops a heart of its own because of the extra mile that she goes in learning more about the key players of this story, like Rajaratnam, the Mckinsey consultant Anil Kumar, the ever-present Roomy Khan, and of course, the former Mckinsey head Rajiv Gupta, to name a few. The first half of the book shifts in time, covering the present SEC investigation in one chapter, before moving to Rajiv Gupta's early years in India in the next, and so on that makes it an interesting style to read. Things really get gripping in the second half as the US government is trying to strengthen its case against a host of people and the story starts to feel like a thriller worthy of being showcased on the big screen.
But more importantly, the book teaches a valuable lesson on governance and integrity, of firms and individuals. How hard one can fall when you break someone's trust; how difficult it is to rebuild when your character itself is assailed. The book sheds some light on the otherwise dark methods used by some of those on Wall Street to get rich quickly. And it also helps in building the image of the US government and its investigating bodies who were relentless in their pursuit to apprehend those who had done wrong. It teaches to those who are willing to listen, that crossing the line and dipping your hands in something illegal will hurt you bad someday; maybe not today or tomorrow, but once the law catches up with you.. it would be too late...
October 25, 2020
Anita Raghavan wordsmiths away any sympathy you might feel for her subjects, a small fraction of the “twice blessed” Indian-American elite immigrants who made their way into the United States since the passage of the Hart-Cellar Act in 1965.
In almost every other immigrant context Anita would be telling a story of group privation and frustration based on the treatment many an immigrant group faced on arrival in America: racial-ethnic stereotyping, limited access to good jobs or good pay, quota delimited admission to America’s most elite colleges and universities, subtle winks, nods, epithets of condescension heard even today, “Is your family in the mafia?”, et al.
Not this group. They had it all when they arrived on our shores: high educational achievement, classical educations/English fluency, family wealth or support, confidence, superior minds. To attend Anita’s video as a handcrafted, beautifully-written history of this group IM by IM, email by email, wire-tapped call by wire-tapped call, memo by memo, tawdry plea deal by tawdry plea deal, is to watch crumble the almost mystic belief among many in corporate management that this group had exceptional powers.
Instead, a small fraction of this elite group headed in the direction of lavish self-delusion. What ensued were machinations in close parallel to Bernard Madoff’s schemes but in reverse. In The Billionaire’s Apprentice, the self-delusion required by greedy investors to believe Madoff was real was self-inflicted by a few individual members of the Indian-American elite on themselves. Thievery is thievery. Stealing is stealing. Self-delusion is self-delusion.
The Galleon Hedge Fund case with its web of implicated accomplices re-tells a story we have heard many times. The falling knife of irony that draws us to Anita’s storytelling begins its descent in the halls of America’s iconic institutions of higher learning (think Harvard, MIT), within the board rooms of her iconic companies (think Goldman Sachs, Proctor & Gamble, with the trappings of American politico-economic power (think befriending Bill Clinton, hiring Chelsea Clinton at McKinsey), and ends as tragically as an attempt to catch that falling knife. But this time highly educated South-Asians, not locker-room jokers, take apart America’s exceptionalism as easily as some of our own take apart the dignity of government service (think Justice Antonin Scalia’s open Supreme Court seat being used as a political pin-cushion immediately after his death and before his family could have a few days to mourn).
The book is notable for its amazing insider detail and rich, nuanced portrayals of those three leads and a host of others. It is absolutely fascinating stuff. Raghavan completely nails her goals: here are children of Indian/Sri Lankan immigrants at the absolute peaks of their profession, the "maturation" and influence of the diaspora made manifest through brains, relentless networking, and indefatigable effort.
And, in the case of Rajaratnam, a little something extra: "Edge." Often 'edge' is simply outworking the other guy and having the iron gut to act of the information. Other times, the edge is illegally obtained information, typically corporate insiders expertly nurtured by Rajaratnam.
I think all readers of the book know the core story here: Gupta abusing his position on the board of directors at various companies; Rajaratnam collecting the information from him and various others; Bharara pursuing both of them. What makes the book fascinating is Raghavan's compelling case against Gupta (still professing a degree of innocence) and admiration for what Rajaratnam had built. The preponderance of circumstantial evidence she compiles against Gupta is overwhelming in its sheer weight. And, at the end of the day, she points out that Gupta still really didn't get it noting that "After more than two years of feeding him information, Kumar seemed to have little sense of exactly how Rajaratnam made his money. For someone so smart, Kumar had little understanding of how event-driven hedge funds like Galleon really worked."
Meanwhile, despite the clear criminality of his edgiest edges, Raghavan says admiringly of Rajaratnam that "Unlike Kumar, the salaried consultant who got paid simply for showing up, Rajaratnam was an entrepreneur who built an investment empire with his very own blood, sweat, and tears. The ebullient markets in recent years made people forget about the hard work, long hours, and risks he had taken to create Galleon."
So why does Anita strike such a chord of sadness in us when describing the actions of a few bad apples? A chord that compels us to read on and on? Is it the height from which the knife-fall occurs? The ethnic makeup of the protagonists and their upright prosecutors? The rapidity of the ascent to rock stardom? The rapidity of descent to rock breaker? Or the beauty of the language of the “Prologue: The Twice Blessed”?
It’s all in the beauty. Group success as South Asians have taken their place, like immigrant groups before them, Anita avers, is evinced by overwhelming successful and upright members.
Her certainty that stereotypes do not bedevil those preceding immigrant groups, as well as South Asians, eludes me.
The vibrant colors of India’s flag adorn the cover of The Billionaire’s Apprentice, but in “portrait”, not as in India’s flag’s “landscape” design, another one of her ironies? Probably not.
In almost every other immigrant context Anita would be telling a story of group privation and frustration based on the treatment many an immigrant group faced on arrival in America: racial-ethnic stereotyping, limited access to good jobs or good pay, quota delimited admission to America’s most elite colleges and universities, subtle winks, nods, epithets of condescension heard even today, “Is your family in the mafia?”, et al.
Not this group. They had it all when they arrived on our shores: high educational achievement, classical educations/English fluency, family wealth or support, confidence, superior minds. To attend Anita’s video as a handcrafted, beautifully-written history of this group IM by IM, email by email, wire-tapped call by wire-tapped call, memo by memo, tawdry plea deal by tawdry plea deal, is to watch crumble the almost mystic belief among many in corporate management that this group had exceptional powers.
Instead, a small fraction of this elite group headed in the direction of lavish self-delusion. What ensued were machinations in close parallel to Bernard Madoff’s schemes but in reverse. In The Billionaire’s Apprentice, the self-delusion required by greedy investors to believe Madoff was real was self-inflicted by a few individual members of the Indian-American elite on themselves. Thievery is thievery. Stealing is stealing. Self-delusion is self-delusion.
The Galleon Hedge Fund case with its web of implicated accomplices re-tells a story we have heard many times. The falling knife of irony that draws us to Anita’s storytelling begins its descent in the halls of America’s iconic institutions of higher learning (think Harvard, MIT), within the board rooms of her iconic companies (think Goldman Sachs, Proctor & Gamble, with the trappings of American politico-economic power (think befriending Bill Clinton, hiring Chelsea Clinton at McKinsey), and ends as tragically as an attempt to catch that falling knife. But this time highly educated South-Asians, not locker-room jokers, take apart America’s exceptionalism as easily as some of our own take apart the dignity of government service (think Justice Antonin Scalia’s open Supreme Court seat being used as a political pin-cushion immediately after his death and before his family could have a few days to mourn).
The book is notable for its amazing insider detail and rich, nuanced portrayals of those three leads and a host of others. It is absolutely fascinating stuff. Raghavan completely nails her goals: here are children of Indian/Sri Lankan immigrants at the absolute peaks of their profession, the "maturation" and influence of the diaspora made manifest through brains, relentless networking, and indefatigable effort.
And, in the case of Rajaratnam, a little something extra: "Edge." Often 'edge' is simply outworking the other guy and having the iron gut to act of the information. Other times, the edge is illegally obtained information, typically corporate insiders expertly nurtured by Rajaratnam.
I think all readers of the book know the core story here: Gupta abusing his position on the board of directors at various companies; Rajaratnam collecting the information from him and various others; Bharara pursuing both of them. What makes the book fascinating is Raghavan's compelling case against Gupta (still professing a degree of innocence) and admiration for what Rajaratnam had built. The preponderance of circumstantial evidence she compiles against Gupta is overwhelming in its sheer weight. And, at the end of the day, she points out that Gupta still really didn't get it noting that "After more than two years of feeding him information, Kumar seemed to have little sense of exactly how Rajaratnam made his money. For someone so smart, Kumar had little understanding of how event-driven hedge funds like Galleon really worked."
Meanwhile, despite the clear criminality of his edgiest edges, Raghavan says admiringly of Rajaratnam that "Unlike Kumar, the salaried consultant who got paid simply for showing up, Rajaratnam was an entrepreneur who built an investment empire with his very own blood, sweat, and tears. The ebullient markets in recent years made people forget about the hard work, long hours, and risks he had taken to create Galleon."
So why does Anita strike such a chord of sadness in us when describing the actions of a few bad apples? A chord that compels us to read on and on? Is it the height from which the knife-fall occurs? The ethnic makeup of the protagonists and their upright prosecutors? The rapidity of the ascent to rock stardom? The rapidity of descent to rock breaker? Or the beauty of the language of the “Prologue: The Twice Blessed”?
It’s all in the beauty. Group success as South Asians have taken their place, like immigrant groups before them, Anita avers, is evinced by overwhelming successful and upright members.
Her certainty that stereotypes do not bedevil those preceding immigrant groups, as well as South Asians, eludes me.
The vibrant colors of India’s flag adorn the cover of The Billionaire’s Apprentice, but in “portrait”, not as in India’s flag’s “landscape” design, another one of her ironies? Probably not.
December 13, 2024
While I really like the concept of the book, I didn’t love the writing style (how many times does something need to be described as “tony”) and I struggled to engage with the narrative as fully as other similar reads- the points felt too small, rather than focused on themes they read, to me like a layout of a court case that you hear of in the end.
February 6, 2024
Very insightful & informative. Sometimes overly bollywood dramatic but brilliant overall. One must read this & the mind without fear together to really appreciate the difference in narratives & also astonishingly the defiance of Rajat Gupta in his conviction. Its amazing how a CEO of a firm like McKinsey didn’t know how to toe the line & keep mum!!!
Quite an amazing read
Quite an amazing read
February 9, 2020
Intresting read to find out how Indian Americans ascended with hard work to the highest echelons of financial world and how new found greed demolishes the same people into oblivion by practices such as insider trading.
April 27, 2021
This book provides interesting insights into the rise and fall of Raj Rajaratnam and Raj Gupta, specially with regard to insider trading and the sharing of material nonpublic information.
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