Wall Street Potholes: Insights from Top Money Managers on Avoiding Dangerous Products

by Simon A. Lack

Recognize Wall Street tactics for what they are, and make smarter decisions with your money Wall Street Potholes shares insights into the money management industry, revealing the shady practices that benefit the salesman far more than the client. Bestselling author Simon Lack brings together a team of experienced money managers to give you straight-from-the-source intel, and teach you how to recognize bad advice and when it's better to just walk away. Investors are rightly suspicious that many products are sold more because of the fees they generate than their appropriateness to the client's situation, and that's only the beginning. This book lays it all bare so you can walk into your next deal with your eyes wide open. You'll learn just how big the profit margin is on different products, and why Wall Street intentionally makes things as complicated as possible. You'll learn expert tactics for combatting these practices, so you can avoid buying overpriced products and confidently discriminate against advisors who put their own interests first. For all the volumes of investment advice on the market, dissatisfaction with the financial services industry has never been higher. This book describes the reason for that disconnect, and tells you how to see through the smoke and mirrors to make the best decisions for your money. If asking questions of your financial advisor only nets more confusion, if you want to have more control over your money, you need a firm grasp of how these firms manipulate your trust. Wall Street Potholes tells you what you need to know to become a smarter investor.

Genres: Nonfiction

256 pages, Hardcover

First published November 2, 2015

Reviews

[Thomas Edmund · Rating 5 out of 5]

Admittedly this book probably applies to people who actually have significant money to lose as opposed to myself who is really just studying up on investment as a form of wishful thinking (Broke Millenial guide to investing fits my situation better)

Nonetheless this is a vital installment to understanding some real dodgy concerns about investment - to be honest making a vast amount of investment services seem completely unethical. The key concerns in place are either hidden fees and/or obscure investment agreements that blindside investors or set them up for failure more than they realize.

At the times the analysis is quite deep and it took me a bit to follow at times, that said the technicals aren't really the take-home message its the cautions and safe approach that is - highly recommended for anyone diving into investments for any reason.

[Ryan Adams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Naturally it’s a pretty dry read. The author really drives the points ‘caveat emptor’ and ‘are you obliged to act as a fiduciary on my account?’ Mostly elementary but good advice on how to act as your own advocate while trying to find financial advice.

Good book for niche advice- look up the chapter regarding a product or service you are interested in. (But the advice is virtually always ‘that product is too expensive/risky/complicated to be worth buying’ it’s true, but expected)

[Anandh Sundar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simon explains the issues with unlisted REIT, structured notes, mutual funds and hedge funds, also explaining the conflicts of interest and ethical issues