What do you think?
Rate this book
How Money Became Dangerous: The Inside Story of Our Turbulent Relationship with Modern Finance
From a veteran of the trade, a provocative and entertaining voyage into the turbulent heart of modern money that sheds new light on the rise of our threatening and complicated financial system, how money became our adversary, and why finding a new course is crucial to a healthy society
In the not too distant past, money was simple. You might have had a bank account and a mortgage, perhaps some basic investments. Wall Street didn’t have a reputation for greed and recklessness. That all started to change in the eighties, as our financial systems became increasingly complex, moving beyond the understanding of the general public while impacting our lives in innumerable ways. The financial world began to feel like an enigma—a rogue force working against us, seemingly controlled by no one.
From an industry veteran who’s had firsthand involvement in the events that shaped modern money, How Money Became Dangerous journeys from the crime-ridden LA jewelry district to the cutthroat Salomon Brothers trading floor, from the high-stakes world of investment banking to the center of the technology boom, capturing the key deals, developments, and players that made the financial world what it is today. The book illuminates the dark, hidden forces of Wall Street and how it has dehumanized and left behind everyday Americans. A fresh and enlightening take on how we reached this point, How Money Became Dangerous also makes the case for why Wall Street needs to be saved, if only to save ourselves.
In the not too distant past, money was simple. You might have had a bank account and a mortgage, perhaps some basic investments. Wall Street didn’t have a reputation for greed and recklessness. That all started to change in the eighties, as our financial systems became increasingly complex, moving beyond the understanding of the general public while impacting our lives in innumerable ways. The financial world began to feel like an enigma—a rogue force working against us, seemingly controlled by no one.
From an industry veteran who’s had firsthand involvement in the events that shaped modern money, How Money Became Dangerous journeys from the crime-ridden LA jewelry district to the cutthroat Salomon Brothers trading floor, from the high-stakes world of investment banking to the center of the technology boom, capturing the key deals, developments, and players that made the financial world what it is today. The book illuminates the dark, hidden forces of Wall Street and how it has dehumanized and left behind everyday Americans. A fresh and enlightening take on how we reached this point, How Money Became Dangerous also makes the case for why Wall Street needs to be saved, if only to save ourselves.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published November 5, 2019
90 people are currently reading
1132 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
September 18, 2020
4 Stars
A book about rich people, money and there dirty games. I lost interest in mid way but somehow drifted to the end.
A book about rich people, money and there dirty games. I lost interest in mid way but somehow drifted to the end.
February 24, 2020
Varelas worked in Solomon Brothers and then Citibank. How does finance become dangerous?
1. In the beginning, banks were small and bankers knew everyone personally
2. Investment banks grew big through IPOs and now staff could play with other people’s money. As bonus was tied to performance, staff bet big and sometimes 1 person can bring down the whole bank (Barclays etc)
3. Computer spreadsheets allowed detailed calculations to make derivatives to sell to investors, delinking personal connection and responsibility
4. Merger & Acquisition, IPOs: investment bank analysts are told the fix the assumptions to meet the numbers wanted by seniors.
5. Inflated rates of investment return paint a over optimistic picture of certain investment products sold to municipal governments, leading to their bankruptcy
6. Citibank became a too-big-to-fail supermarket bank and became impossible to manage.
7. Hostile takeovers force companies to watch their stock price and short-termism became the norm. Impossible endless growth became the only way to keep stock price going up
8. Transparency of pay push salary of CEO and bankers to the stratosphere
9. All these are a house of cards and can collapse any time.
How to fix this mess?
For finance industry:
1. Require very long term bonus horizon up to 10 years
2. Assign an officer in each investment bank to check products sold to investors
3. Culture tzars to make sure fund managers behave morally, tying 25% of their bonus to it
For government:
1. Federal oversight review board to look over pensions
2. Require finance officials to have appropriate degree and experience
3. Simplify finance regulations
For us:
1. Get educated on finance
2. Hold public officials accountable for their handling of public funds; avoid extravagance
3. Engage your community
Human nature being it is, I doubt most of these changes on the finance industry are actually possible. However we can elect officials who care about our finances, and we cam certainly get educated financially.
1. In the beginning, banks were small and bankers knew everyone personally
2. Investment banks grew big through IPOs and now staff could play with other people’s money. As bonus was tied to performance, staff bet big and sometimes 1 person can bring down the whole bank (Barclays etc)
3. Computer spreadsheets allowed detailed calculations to make derivatives to sell to investors, delinking personal connection and responsibility
4. Merger & Acquisition, IPOs: investment bank analysts are told the fix the assumptions to meet the numbers wanted by seniors.
5. Inflated rates of investment return paint a over optimistic picture of certain investment products sold to municipal governments, leading to their bankruptcy
6. Citibank became a too-big-to-fail supermarket bank and became impossible to manage.
7. Hostile takeovers force companies to watch their stock price and short-termism became the norm. Impossible endless growth became the only way to keep stock price going up
8. Transparency of pay push salary of CEO and bankers to the stratosphere
9. All these are a house of cards and can collapse any time.
How to fix this mess?
For finance industry:
1. Require very long term bonus horizon up to 10 years
2. Assign an officer in each investment bank to check products sold to investors
3. Culture tzars to make sure fund managers behave morally, tying 25% of their bonus to it
For government:
1. Federal oversight review board to look over pensions
2. Require finance officials to have appropriate degree and experience
3. Simplify finance regulations
For us:
1. Get educated on finance
2. Hold public officials accountable for their handling of public funds; avoid extravagance
3. Engage your community
Human nature being it is, I doubt most of these changes on the finance industry are actually possible. However we can elect officials who care about our finances, and we cam certainly get educated financially.
February 3, 2022
As I dove into this I found myself thinking that this was more a collection of stories from Mr. Varelas' life than a work about the dangers of money, but I didn't care as I enjoyed the stories, some of which very slightly intersected with experiences I've had (I'm not in finance, but he's touched many industries including mine, and we're the same age). But as the book progressed, Varelas slyly made his points, and they were good points. The chapter "The Other Line" struck home. I've often railed about the "aspirational lifestyle" and here was a guy who's made millions in a year pointing out the folly of most of those who have accomplished that feat and the ridiculous dreams of those who haven't and who are convinced that their own lives aren't good enough. Money didn't corrupt Varelas - he's the rare normal guy who made it and stayed normal; I felt like he and I could sit down, have a beer, and truly enjoy each other's company. So yes, it was a good read - a quick read, light time investment, worth it.
December 16, 2020
Wow! What a great book! Finance is highly complex, but this book makes it simple and personal. The author does this through stories/vignettes of experiences he has had that illustrate problems in our financial system. The book is no polemic--the author learned about problems as he encountered them. Ten chapters of simple lessons. These are summarized, with suggestions, in a final chapter--admittedly less entertaining, and a bit more difficult. Credit belongs to the author for his broad knowledge and experience. But huge credit goes to his editor/writer who seems to be a strong journalist, checking sources and facts, changing certain names and explaining why--all the while making the reading fun. After many discussions, my wife has demanded to read it . . . then more wonderful discussions.
June 27, 2021
Not what I expected when I read the title, plus the book has many stories without a clear reason!!,
It's written on the cover, but it was so clear that the Author cannot write a straight book...
It's written on the cover, but it was so clear that the Author cannot write a straight book...
February 18, 2020
When I first picked up Christopher Varelas' book "How Money Became Dangerous," I read the dust jacket and was intrigued by the promise that I was going to read a trend book about the transition of our financial system into an "enigma that was becoming a rogue force working against us."
However, when I got into the book, I discovered it was more an autobiography about the financial life of one of the system's players during the time in question. This isn't saying that the stories weren't interesting. They were very interesting and provided some clear examples of the type of financial transition promised in the book jacket.
Nevertheless, some stories were clearly not relevant to the theme of the book. For example, the author's retelling of a voicemail forwarding disaster among his colleagues really didn't do much to illuminate for readers the problems with the world's financial system.
Other stories were more on point especially those dealing with the outrageous bonuses on Wall Street. The author does an admirable job of describing the market forces that basically compel companies to continue to compete with one another to prevent mutiny among their most prized employees.
The epilogue probably offers the most concrete lessons to be learned from the author's life and it manages to pull together many of the apparently unrelated chapters dealing with his experiences in the world of high finance. The inclusion of "action items" at the end finally gives the book a realistic chance of fulfilling its original promise to readers.
However, when I got into the book, I discovered it was more an autobiography about the financial life of one of the system's players during the time in question. This isn't saying that the stories weren't interesting. They were very interesting and provided some clear examples of the type of financial transition promised in the book jacket.
Nevertheless, some stories were clearly not relevant to the theme of the book. For example, the author's retelling of a voicemail forwarding disaster among his colleagues really didn't do much to illuminate for readers the problems with the world's financial system.
Other stories were more on point especially those dealing with the outrageous bonuses on Wall Street. The author does an admirable job of describing the market forces that basically compel companies to continue to compete with one another to prevent mutiny among their most prized employees.
The epilogue probably offers the most concrete lessons to be learned from the author's life and it manages to pull together many of the apparently unrelated chapters dealing with his experiences in the world of high finance. The inclusion of "action items" at the end finally gives the book a realistic chance of fulfilling its original promise to readers.
August 25, 2020
Christopher Varelas takes us on a journey through his financial career that started out, well actually in Disney World which seems kind of appropriate to many sectors of the financial kingdom and all of its fierce and sometimes scary species. His first venture begins in clerical nature at a BofA in Orange county, CA and rapidly progresses to a wide variety of financial experiences.
His first big step is on completion of college and of course Wharton School. Hmmm, isn't there a politician out of there associated with this place? That credential is one of the keys, and literally a key on what he elaborates on, which is access. The ticket to Wall Street where the mover and shaker financial heavyweights play the game. He runs through various positions and on to M&A, and finally wraps up with municipal finances back once again in California with the spectacular meltdown of the infamous but probably forgotten Orange county debacle.
Though the books slogs along at times and I stifled many yawns it does succeed in getting some very important messages across of the pitfalls and perils of our exotic and yes dangerous at times financial system. There are too many aspects to go into here, and there many, but two central themes that surfaced again and again were exploitation and accountability.
In brief exploitation in financials is shown to be rampant and we kind of know that as it pops up in the news almost weekly it seems. The "system" is designed to foster this condition as the human beings pulling strings to enrich themselves are very much in control and will probably always be working their angles.
Accountability seems nearly negligible as the paltry slaps on the hand in way of penalty makes it seem almost quite worthwhile. A lot of those bad guys still walk walkway with bulging pockets of cash. The housing meltdown fabricated by this industry a good example of this. Who paid the price? Not the bank executives. But ultimately the little people on the side streets all over this country who took the brunt of the backlash of this insidious plot.
Varelas wraps up the book with the traditional, what should be done finale to offer his recommendations on measures and solutions to correct some of these evils. I snickered at some of them like, "self regulation" within the industry. Of course put the fox in charge to see the hen house to make sure it is properly secured. But he also had some constructive things to say. Like how about some good educational programs implemented right in the high schools to give our young people starting out a fighting chance in dealing with the financial beast they will encounter again and again. Practical education, what a concept.
As much as I found the book a bit slow and memoir in nature there are numerous insights into what goes on behind the scenes and backrooms that make it worthwhile for anyone curious about the mysteries behind what so influences everything from paychecks to political pacs.
His first big step is on completion of college and of course Wharton School. Hmmm, isn't there a politician out of there associated with this place? That credential is one of the keys, and literally a key on what he elaborates on, which is access. The ticket to Wall Street where the mover and shaker financial heavyweights play the game. He runs through various positions and on to M&A, and finally wraps up with municipal finances back once again in California with the spectacular meltdown of the infamous but probably forgotten Orange county debacle.
Though the books slogs along at times and I stifled many yawns it does succeed in getting some very important messages across of the pitfalls and perils of our exotic and yes dangerous at times financial system. There are too many aspects to go into here, and there many, but two central themes that surfaced again and again were exploitation and accountability.
In brief exploitation in financials is shown to be rampant and we kind of know that as it pops up in the news almost weekly it seems. The "system" is designed to foster this condition as the human beings pulling strings to enrich themselves are very much in control and will probably always be working their angles.
Accountability seems nearly negligible as the paltry slaps on the hand in way of penalty makes it seem almost quite worthwhile. A lot of those bad guys still walk walkway with bulging pockets of cash. The housing meltdown fabricated by this industry a good example of this. Who paid the price? Not the bank executives. But ultimately the little people on the side streets all over this country who took the brunt of the backlash of this insidious plot.
Varelas wraps up the book with the traditional, what should be done finale to offer his recommendations on measures and solutions to correct some of these evils. I snickered at some of them like, "self regulation" within the industry. Of course put the fox in charge to see the hen house to make sure it is properly secured. But he also had some constructive things to say. Like how about some good educational programs implemented right in the high schools to give our young people starting out a fighting chance in dealing with the financial beast they will encounter again and again. Practical education, what a concept.
As much as I found the book a bit slow and memoir in nature there are numerous insights into what goes on behind the scenes and backrooms that make it worthwhile for anyone curious about the mysteries behind what so influences everything from paychecks to political pacs.
December 19, 2020
I really struggled with how many stars to give this one, because it's got some great information and explanation about how things have gone wrong, along with anecdotes and case studies that illustrate what he's talking about. But I think he misses some things that would have affected the analysis, so I ended up giving it 3 instead of 4 stars.
I like the stories that he uses and think they're really helpful for people who aren't in finance so they understand what he's talking about. Though a few times I wasn't sure where we were on the timeline and found the structure a bit confusing. And I had no idea that a porn entrepreneur, Danni Nash, played such a pivotal role in ecommerce infrastructure!
He talks in the book about shareholders accepting an inability to influence company behavior because of their embrace of other investment strategies like mutual funds or index funds. To me, this isn't a tradeoff that investors, at least retail investors, made knowingly. They buy funds because they don't have as much money to invest and still want (or are told to have) diversification.
He seems to have missed the inequality issue almost entirely. He talks about how not enough investors have saved for retirement but doesn't seem to understand that's a consequence of wage stagnation since he started working in the early 90s (and earlier) or the fact that not all companies provide 401ks for their workers, and the limits on individual retirement accounts are too low to provide the savings people need.
He also claims that it's common for people to talk about the US as developing into a retirement system with an army. I... have literally never in my entire life heard this saying. And, uh, what retirement system is he talking about? Underfunded Social Security? Even the federal government no longer offers pensions, they've shifted the risk to workers instead. He says that the pension system is a huge problem. Which it kind of is, but certainly there are much more significant problems in our system. He mentioned that company pensions seem to be better funded than the municipal ones, which caused me to laugh out loud. I think the focus on pensions is a blind spot for the book.
It's written in a way hat non-finance people can understand what's going on, which is great.
I like the stories that he uses and think they're really helpful for people who aren't in finance so they understand what he's talking about. Though a few times I wasn't sure where we were on the timeline and found the structure a bit confusing. And I had no idea that a porn entrepreneur, Danni Nash, played such a pivotal role in ecommerce infrastructure!
He talks in the book about shareholders accepting an inability to influence company behavior because of their embrace of other investment strategies like mutual funds or index funds. To me, this isn't a tradeoff that investors, at least retail investors, made knowingly. They buy funds because they don't have as much money to invest and still want (or are told to have) diversification.
He seems to have missed the inequality issue almost entirely. He talks about how not enough investors have saved for retirement but doesn't seem to understand that's a consequence of wage stagnation since he started working in the early 90s (and earlier) or the fact that not all companies provide 401ks for their workers, and the limits on individual retirement accounts are too low to provide the savings people need.
He also claims that it's common for people to talk about the US as developing into a retirement system with an army. I... have literally never in my entire life heard this saying. And, uh, what retirement system is he talking about? Underfunded Social Security? Even the federal government no longer offers pensions, they've shifted the risk to workers instead. He says that the pension system is a huge problem. Which it kind of is, but certainly there are much more significant problems in our system. He mentioned that company pensions seem to be better funded than the municipal ones, which caused me to laugh out loud. I think the focus on pensions is a blind spot for the book.
It's written in a way hat non-finance people can understand what's going on, which is great.
April 3, 2020
This is really an engaging book. The story of the slow metamorphosis of the financial industry from an efficient background hum to a vilified destructive force is told with passion, experience, and vividness. The subject matter has the potential to be extremely dry, but Varelas uses anecdotes, both personal and widely-known, to lend a human hue to his points. And his points are vital.
The financial industry has lost its footing, Varelas argues, thanks to technology, a shift from partnerships to publicly-traded status, a focus on short-term yields and transaction speed over care, analysis, and long-term viability, and incongruence between the need for long-term outlooks and short terms for politicians handling public financial decisions. All of these trends that broke bad had good intentions, and that's one of Varelas's points: the changes to the industry are neither inherently bad or good. We just need to financially educate ourselves as citizens, insist on incentivizing longer-term financial horizons in private and public finance, and elect smarter, civically-minded officials. I liked how Varelas did more than point out problems -- he offered workable solutions. Who knows if we will have the collective will to recognize and implement them.
The financial industry has lost its footing, Varelas argues, thanks to technology, a shift from partnerships to publicly-traded status, a focus on short-term yields and transaction speed over care, analysis, and long-term viability, and incongruence between the need for long-term outlooks and short terms for politicians handling public financial decisions. All of these trends that broke bad had good intentions, and that's one of Varelas's points: the changes to the industry are neither inherently bad or good. We just need to financially educate ourselves as citizens, insist on incentivizing longer-term financial horizons in private and public finance, and elect smarter, civically-minded officials. I liked how Varelas did more than point out problems -- he offered workable solutions. Who knows if we will have the collective will to recognize and implement them.
September 28, 2021
As a reader, the author was speaking to "the choir.” Through his anecdotes and experiences, he points out many of the flaws of the current banking and investment systems. I was amused by his experience as a child where he put money into a savings account regularly. He later went to withdraw the money, which was admittedly a small amount, only to find out that the account was wiped out due to fees. Bankers are not your friend.
I found most but not all of the anecdotes to be interesting and informative. The author offers potential solutions for the banking and investment industries, government and for consumers in mitigating corruption, waste and abuse. I think his most powerful point is that people need to understand money and finance much better. This reader who has been in the banking industry most of his life confesses that he really doesn't understand many of the financial terms, products, alternatives and risks involved. I view most investing as gambling – – simply making a bet on chance.
I enjoyed 80 to 85% of the book – – the other 15% I did not learn anything new or of interest.
I found most but not all of the anecdotes to be interesting and informative. The author offers potential solutions for the banking and investment industries, government and for consumers in mitigating corruption, waste and abuse. I think his most powerful point is that people need to understand money and finance much better. This reader who has been in the banking industry most of his life confesses that he really doesn't understand many of the financial terms, products, alternatives and risks involved. I view most investing as gambling – – simply making a bet on chance.
I enjoyed 80 to 85% of the book – – the other 15% I did not learn anything new or of interest.
July 1, 2024
I really enjoyed reading this book, even more than anticipated. It actually gets 4.5 stars. 🙂 This book is about the American culture, key changes in finance that have occurred over the last 50 years, and resulting changes and impacts. The author provides several personal stories and connections related to each of the key points in the book. These stories personalize the book, keep it interesting, bring emotions into some serious issues, and have you wonder what will be coming next. I learned a lot and I’m glad I read it!
While it does have a lot of complex finance talk in it, I was able to generally follow. But I am a Certified Public Accounting (CPA) who has worked in accounting in both DC and NYC so I realize I have a little more of an advantage. All that said, I recommend this book to anyone interested in finances, the market, and/or retirement financial plans.
While it does have a lot of complex finance talk in it, I was able to generally follow. But I am a Certified Public Accounting (CPA) who has worked in accounting in both DC and NYC so I realize I have a little more of an advantage. All that said, I recommend this book to anyone interested in finances, the market, and/or retirement financial plans.
August 26, 2022
I didn't know much about this topic before I began reading this book. The author, through recounting his own career at Salomon Brothers, leads through a thoughtful analysis of the various economic catastrophes we have experienced in the past 30-40 years. It does make one wonder what capitalism has wrought -- an entire industry that manipulates markets in order to make some few people wealthy and to cause many more to lose their wealth. There is a nice explanation of "junk bonds", some of the mortgage-backed securities that died with the housing bubble and even an analysis on how "influencers" work in the modern internet.
January 7, 2025
Really enlightening and entertaining
Whether you are in the financial sector or not, this book is an incredible read and I highly recommend it to anyone.
Chris Varelas has had a front row seat to some of the pivotal moments in finance of the last forty years. With good humor and a great turn of phrase, he walks you through the consequences of those moments for our financial system, and our culture at large.
While the topic could be depressing, Varelas also ends with some concrete suggestions for leadership at every level, including your own personal leadership.
I highlighted dozens of passages, I know I will be revisiting this often.
Whether you are in the financial sector or not, this book is an incredible read and I highly recommend it to anyone.
Chris Varelas has had a front row seat to some of the pivotal moments in finance of the last forty years. With good humor and a great turn of phrase, he walks you through the consequences of those moments for our financial system, and our culture at large.
While the topic could be depressing, Varelas also ends with some concrete suggestions for leadership at every level, including your own personal leadership.
I highlighted dozens of passages, I know I will be revisiting this often.
November 21, 2019
A look into what’s gone wrong with our financial system, and what we can do about it
The characters throughout the stories of the book are what really make it special, and make the concepts stick in your mind. Instead of a dry recitation of financial facts and their implications the book really brings alive the weird and fascinating personal stories of people shaping the financial system for the past forty years, from small business lending all the way up to multi-billion dollar mergers. A page turner from start to finish.
The characters throughout the stories of the book are what really make it special, and make the concepts stick in your mind. Instead of a dry recitation of financial facts and their implications the book really brings alive the weird and fascinating personal stories of people shaping the financial system for the past forty years, from small business lending all the way up to multi-billion dollar mergers. A page turner from start to finish.
July 30, 2020
I was expecting something different. Like a former Wall Street geek talking data and formal insights on how trading works but this is a fun read filled with anecdotes and tales of deals gone sour, rule breaking with some greed, jealousy thrown in. A fun tale that is a bit harrowing and hopeful but one wonders is this how are financials are supposed to work? Can they withstand the morass of misdeeds and miscreants? TBD - good read, even a summer read on the shores of Long Island, a long way from Wall Street and Capitol Hill.
January 28, 2022
Good book but not the title
A very personal story but title is deceiving. Wasn’t a bad book and the author told a lot of great stories about some inner workings of the financial industry. However he glosses over how money becomes dangerous. Since he is an insider, the author has a issue trying to paint a bad picture of the industry and how in the 20th century and early 21st century it nearly destroyed the US economy. Lots of fun antidotes and great laugh out loud personal stories but seriously sugarcoats the industry.
A very personal story but title is deceiving. Wasn’t a bad book and the author told a lot of great stories about some inner workings of the financial industry. However he glosses over how money becomes dangerous. Since he is an insider, the author has a issue trying to paint a bad picture of the industry and how in the 20th century and early 21st century it nearly destroyed the US economy. Lots of fun antidotes and great laugh out loud personal stories but seriously sugarcoats the industry.
August 11, 2023
Interesting stories of one person that has worked in the finance industry. At times I felt like he generalized the learnings of his personal stories too much to make it fit the whole finance industry. However, there’s no doubt his stories, principles, and proposed action items are thought provoking and can improve the accountability of financial institutions and its employees, politicians, but also each and every citizen being a part and contributing to the financial system. The epilogue is a great summary of his book and principles.
January 25, 2020
A good, entertaining book about our new class ( the other line) system that has been created by our modern financial world. Told by first hand accounts by an insider I learned many things that I never knew or had considered before. Case in point; a local firm was just bought out by another company in the same line of business. By reading this book I now have a better understanding of what is really going on with this purchase and how it could effect our local economy.
April 3, 2022
A book we should all read
This book helped me better understand how our financial system works both constructively and destructively. I enjoyed reading about his personal experiences and I think that the recommendations he makes to improve our system at the end of the book should be widely discussed. He briefly mentions the financial crisis of 2008, but does not go into any detail, which I would have liked.
This book helped me better understand how our financial system works both constructively and destructively. I enjoyed reading about his personal experiences and I think that the recommendations he makes to improve our system at the end of the book should be widely discussed. He briefly mentions the financial crisis of 2008, but does not go into any detail, which I would have liked.
December 18, 2022
Probably my favorite "nonfiction" book I've read recently - not exactly traditional nonfiction since it was more in a story format but that's exactly why I found it interesting. I typically don't read much about finance since I don't understand much about it but the few financial concepts mentioned were explained pretty well and I liked the mixture between philosophical narrating and storytelling.
February 10, 2020
Insightful book on the recent history and inner workings of Wall Street and government financing. Also shows the risk of not looking to the future for underfunded pensions and excessive spending by governments. Greed and short term profits do not paint a good picture for the future.
November 18, 2019
Excellent book!!!
March 27, 2020
The term Rules were made to be broken really applies to the stories in here. And, apparently, rules are broken with money. Lots of it.
May 31, 2020
While interesting, this seemed more like a memoir than like a comprehensive look at modern finance. And while the author is good at telling his story, I was looking for a little more than that.
October 1, 2020
Fantastic stories from the world of high finance. Part memoir, part recent history. The year-end bonuses were eye-popping. Makes me think I went into the wrong line of work.
July 3, 2022
Well written kept me interested
December 2, 2022
Excellent! The first economy book I read that is really a novel! More like an autobiography really. Very entertaining. Economy and human psychology.
February 16, 2025
Easy read with great stories on how the financial system has become better but at the same time much riskier.
September 20, 2020
Life learning
This was an effective book because it told a personal story.I would love to meet the authors because the point of the book was cleverly buried in a readable personal history . Perhaps this message in a bottle approach has something to do with the Trojan horse or windex which another famous Greek found can fix anything.
Thomas Cahill
This was an effective book because it told a personal story.I would love to meet the authors because the point of the book was cleverly buried in a readable personal history . Perhaps this message in a bottle approach has something to do with the Trojan horse or windex which another famous Greek found can fix anything.
Thomas Cahill
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews