Jeff Hirsh Read: April 2020
Inspiration: Why does everyone in finance seem to mention this book? What happened in the Great Financial Crisis?
Summary
Written with the help of ChatGPT, below is a brief summary to understand what is covered in the book.
“Too Big to Fail”, published in 2009 by author and financial journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin, tells the story of the 2008 global financial crisis and the efforts by financial institutions and government officials to prevent the collapse of the global financial system. The book provides a brief history of the events leading up to the crisis, including the proliferation of subprime mortgages and the use of complex financial instruments such as mortgage-backed securities. It then goes on to detail the various efforts by the U.S. government and the Federal Reserve to stabilize the financial system, including the bailouts of Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, and AIG.
Throughout the book, Sorkin provides extensive interviews with key players involved in the crisis, including government officials, financial executives, and policymakers. He offers a behind-the-scenes look at the decision-making processes and negotiations that took place during the crisis, and he explores the complex interplay between Wall Street and Washington. The book concludes with a discussion of the aftermath of the crisis and the lessons learned from the experience.
Unedited Notes
Direct from my original book log, below are my unedited notes (abbreviations and misspellings included) to show how I take notes as I read.
***Disclaimer: notes taken before realizing I needed better notes
Barclays had deal to save Lehman Sunday before collapse but UK regulators shut down Complex web of interaction to save financial system, constant overnight meetings Interesting dynamics between self-interest for bank CEOs vs saving system Moral hazard was top of mind, especial why let Lehman go after savings Bear Stearns AIG one of most troubled who needed saving Big players: NY Fed Geitner, Treasury Paulson, Fed Chair Bernake, Jamie Dimon Needed good banks to borrow from Fed discount window (GS/MS) to show confidence
