Overview
On September 12th 2008, Lehman Brothers was valued at 639 billion US dollars. On Monday 15th September, it was worth nothing. How could trillions of dollars seemingly melt into air? Lehman Brothers had a long and prestigious history, and certainly until the end of 2007 had appeared to be conducting a very successful business. Its collapse was the largest bankruptcy in American history and is widely regarded as a crucial event in triggering the turmoil in the markets that triggered the global financial crisis. In this book, Oonagh McDonald, the author of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, unravels the events of that fateful September weekend. Using extensive documentary evidence and interviews with former Lehman employees, she reveals the decisions that led to Lehman's collapse, looks at why the government refused a bail-out and whether the implications of this refusal were fully understood. In clear and accessible language she demonstrates both the short and long term effects of Lehman's collapse. This is a fascinating story, with very wide implications. In particular, it raises vital questions about virtual capital and artificial value. McDonald uses her study of the Lehman collapse to examine what is meant by economic value and how it should be identified and measured.
Full Product Details
Author: Oonagh McDonald
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Weight: 0.454kg
ISBN: 9781472572899
ISBN 10: 1472572890
Pages: 288
Publication Date: 22 October 2015
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming
Availability: Not yet available
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Reviews
The collapse of Lehmann Brothers unleashed the crisis which became the Great Recession. It is therefore welcome that Oonagh McDonald has written a clear and analytical account of what happened and why. She has a reader-friendly style and a sharp eye for detail. This book will be helpful to all those interested in finance for practical or academic reasons. Lord Meghnad Desai, Professor Emeritus of Economics at the London School of Economics, UK, and Chairman of the Board of Advisers of the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum
Author Information
Dr Oonagh McDonald CBE was a board member of the Securities and Investments Board and subsequently of the Financial Services Authority and of the General Insurance Standards Council. She is currently chairman of a public inquiry into property valuation for the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. She was a Member of Parliament for Thurrock, Essex (1976-1987) and was a member of the front-bench Treasury team from 1983-87. She is the author of a number of books and monographs, including The Future of European Retail Banking: The View from the Top (2002) and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: Turning the American Dream into a Nightmare (Bloomsbury, 2012). In 1998, she was awarded the CBE for her services to business and financial regulation.
