Meltdown
Scandal, Sleaze and the Collapse of Credit Suisse
Published on 7. November 2024
Book
Hardback
336 pages
978-1-0350-3746-9 (ISBN)
Description
'This is more than a richly detailed story about the hubris, corruption and incompetence that doomed Credit Suisse; it's a stark warning to all of us about what happens when we let bankers do what they like' - Oliver Bullough, bestselling author of Butler to the World
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For centuries, Swiss banks have served the globe's wealthiest individuals, employing a strict culture of anonymity and gaining massive wealth in the process. But when Credit Suisse collapsed, the veil of secrecy came down and the world was suddenly privy to the corruption, scandal and empty hubris that keep our biggest banks alive.
It was a 166-year-old bastion of Swiss banking, amongst the most important and influential financial institutions in the world - but a veneer of high-class service disguised a darker, dirtier reality. From its sterile Zurich headquarters, the bank catered to a clientele that included dictators, drug dealers and former Nazi officers, and helped fleece its own clients out of billions of dollars. This continued for decades, even as Credit Suisse continued to expand, acquiring smaller banks and granting its own executives lucrative bonus contracts.
Meltdown is the story of how the house of cards fell apart. Bloomberg investigative journalist and bestselling author of Pyramid of Lies Duncan Mavin takes readers inside the bank's hushed marble corridors, detailing its secretive culture and the series of increasingly selfish decisions, made by a handful of men at the top, which ultimately led to disaster.
This is the fascinating history of one of the biggest financial institutions of our times - and a thrilling expose of the wider financial services sector - which promises to give readers a shocking and brutally honest look into a previously-unknown world of greed, lies and unrelenting human ambition.
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"A riveting autopsy of how one of banking's titans gradually, then suddenly, crumbled under the weight of its own misdeeds" - Bradley Hope, New York Times bestselling author of Billion Dollar Whale and Blood and Oil
"This financial thriller of a book offers a tantalising glimpse into the rot at the heart of one of the world's most powerful banks" - Parmy Olson, bestselling author of We Are Anonymous and Supremacy
"We're used by now to bankers behaving badly, but Duncan Mavin takes it to another shocking, anger-inducing level. Credit Suisse stood for propriety, but he shows this to be a total fabrication" - Chris Blackhurst, former editor of The Independent and bestselling author of Too Big to Jail
"A gripping story of power, greed and panic, and a humbling reminder of the enormous cost of capitalism going awry" - Josie Cox, author of Women, Money and Power
---
For centuries, Swiss banks have served the globe's wealthiest individuals, employing a strict culture of anonymity and gaining massive wealth in the process. But when Credit Suisse collapsed, the veil of secrecy came down and the world was suddenly privy to the corruption, scandal and empty hubris that keep our biggest banks alive.
It was a 166-year-old bastion of Swiss banking, amongst the most important and influential financial institutions in the world - but a veneer of high-class service disguised a darker, dirtier reality. From its sterile Zurich headquarters, the bank catered to a clientele that included dictators, drug dealers and former Nazi officers, and helped fleece its own clients out of billions of dollars. This continued for decades, even as Credit Suisse continued to expand, acquiring smaller banks and granting its own executives lucrative bonus contracts.
Meltdown is the story of how the house of cards fell apart. Bloomberg investigative journalist and bestselling author of Pyramid of Lies Duncan Mavin takes readers inside the bank's hushed marble corridors, detailing its secretive culture and the series of increasingly selfish decisions, made by a handful of men at the top, which ultimately led to disaster.
This is the fascinating history of one of the biggest financial institutions of our times - and a thrilling expose of the wider financial services sector - which promises to give readers a shocking and brutally honest look into a previously-unknown world of greed, lies and unrelenting human ambition.
---
"A riveting autopsy of how one of banking's titans gradually, then suddenly, crumbled under the weight of its own misdeeds" - Bradley Hope, New York Times bestselling author of Billion Dollar Whale and Blood and Oil
"This financial thriller of a book offers a tantalising glimpse into the rot at the heart of one of the world's most powerful banks" - Parmy Olson, bestselling author of We Are Anonymous and Supremacy
"We're used by now to bankers behaving badly, but Duncan Mavin takes it to another shocking, anger-inducing level. Credit Suisse stood for propriety, but he shows this to be a total fabrication" - Chris Blackhurst, former editor of The Independent and bestselling author of Too Big to Jail
"A gripping story of power, greed and panic, and a humbling reminder of the enormous cost of capitalism going awry" - Josie Cox, author of Women, Money and Power
Reviews / Votes
This isn't just a richly detailed story about the hubris, corruption and incompetence that doomed Credit Suisse, it's a stark warning to all of us about what happens when we let bankers do what they like -- Oliver Bullough, bestselling author of <i> Butler to the World </i> A riveting autopsy of Credit Suisse's dramatic downfall, Mavin's Meltdown expertly dissects decades of scandal and hubris. This meticulously researched expose reveals how one of banking's titans gradually, then suddenly, crumbled under the weight of its own misdeeds -- Bradley Hope, <i>New York Times</i> bestselling author of <i>Billion Dollar Whale</i> and <i>Blood and Oil</i> We're used by now to bankers behaving badly, yet Duncan Mavin takes it to another, shocking, anger-inducing level. Credit Suisse stood for propriety, but starting with the Holocaust and ending with the vast bank's sudden collapse, he shows this to be a total fabrication -- Chris Blackhurst, bestselling author of <i> Too Big to Jail </i> and <i> The World's Biggest Cash Machine </i> Meltdown offers a gripping and meticulously researched account of Credit Suisse's downfall. Mavin uses vivid storytelling and deep insider knowledge to unravel the long history of scandal, hubris, and mismanagement that ultimately led to the bank's collapse. This financial thriller of a book offers a tantalising glimpse into the rot at the heart of one of the world's most powerful banks -- Parmy Olson, bestselling author of <i>We Are Anonymous</i> and <i>Supremacy</i> Through deep meticulous reporting and compelling storytelling, Mavin chronicles the gradual, quiet demise-and then shockingly sudden collapse-of what was once one of the world's most trusted financial institutions. A gripping story of power, greed and panic, and a humbling reminder of the enormous cost of capitalism going awry -- Josie Cox, author of <i> Women, Money and Power </i> Pulling no punches and naming names, Mavin lays out an almost comically scandalous story with dry humour, connecting the granular details of how it happened to the big picture - a decades-long saga of corporate folly. Swiss bank secrecy laws emerge as the villain, protecting over-rated, unaccountable executives from scrutiny of their actions until it was too late for anyone to save them from the consequences -- Andy Verity, BBC Economics correspondent and author of <i>Rigged</i> Duncan Mavin's engaging, authoritative indictment of Credit Suisse is a cavalcade of scandals, crises, and chronic management failures fueled by a pervasively rotten culture. Meltdown is a sensational page-turner, even if you sometimes feel like looking away in disgust from the illegality, amorality, depravity and greed that defined this pillar of global high finance for decades until its collapse. -- Sean Silcoff, author of <i>Losing the Signal</i> A gripping account of how the Swiss bank collapsed under the weight of scandal after scandal -- <i>The Times</i> Meltdown is an eminently readable survey of Credit Suisse's tawdry history, and many of the industry's darker secrets -- <i>The Telegraph</i> A powerful and well-researched expose of a bank that deserved to die, Meltdown is an object lesson in how not to run a bank -- <i>Literary Review</i> Duncan Mavin is well placed to tell this corporate horror story...Meltdown is a repeat demolition job, a pacy account of Credit Suisse's rise and fall -- Lionel Barber in <i>The Spectator</i> Meltdown is an exhilarating read, with truths more compelling than most fiction. Read it, weep, and look out for the Hollywood blockbuster -- <i>Banking Risk & Regulation</i> A whistle-stop tour of scandals... but at its heart is a financial lesson that we keep having to relearn: Banks don't fail because they run out of money. They fail because they run out of trust -- Liz Hoffman, reviewing for <i>Semafor</i> A whistle-stop tour of Credit Suisse's litany of occasionally comical scandals...Meltdown is an excellent chronology -- <i>Financial News</i> The chequered 167-year history of Credit Suisse is deftly analysed... and told with commendable clarity -- <i>Spear's Magazine</i> Unputdownably delicious . . . the British version of Bad Blood . . . [but] better -- <i>The Sunday Times,</i> on <i>Pyramid of Lies</i> Quite simply, one of the best books of investigative journalism I have ever read. Duncan Mavin is a natural story-teller and a brilliant sleuth -- Matthew d'Ancona, bestselling author of <i>Post-Truth</i>, on <i>Pyramid of Lies</i> Leaves little doubt that much is indeed wrong in the excessively close relationship between some financiers and politicians . . . [who] stood to gain millions of pounds -- Simon Clark, author of <i>The Key Man, </i>on <i>Pyramid of Lies</i> Terrific . . . shows the emptiness behind the bombast -- Nick Cohen, <i>The Observer</i>, Book of the Week, on <i>Pyramid of Lies</i> A meticulously researched and enjoyably lively account -- <i>The Daily Telegraph, </i>on <i>Pyramid of Lies</i> Forensic and riveting -- <i>The New Statesman, </i>on <i>Pyramid of Lies</i> Mavin expertly demystifies the rise and fall of Greensill Capital and weaves an intriguing tale at the cross section of sleaze, power and greed at the heart of UK politics and global finance. A fascinating - and prescient - read -- Karl Holbrook, Executive Editor, <i>Daily Express, </i>on <i>Pyramid of Lies</i> Duncan Mavin's gripping account of the bank's 2023 implosion exposes a crisis decades in the making . . . A pageturner -- <i>Financial Times</i>More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Pan Macmillan
Target group
Interest Age: From 18 years
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 162 mm
Thickness: 32 mm
Weight
545 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-0350-3746-9 (9781035037469)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
11/2024
Macmillan Business
€16.99
Available for download
Person
Duncan Mavin is a seasoned international financial journalist, having started his career as a chartered accountant in the City and in Toronto. He has been a reporter and editor for The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post, and was the Journal's Financial Editor for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He has also been Managing Editor for Barron's Group and a reporter for Canada's National Post, and he's the bestselling author of "Britain's version of Bad Blood", the Lex Greensill expose Pyramid of Lies. He lives with his family in the UK, and is a long-suffering fan of Sunderland football club.