Money Mania: Booms, Panics, and Busts from Ancient Rome to the Great Meltdown - Hardcover

Swarup, Bob

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1608198413 ISBN 13: 9781608198412

Publisher: Bloomsbury Press, 2014

Synopsis

Money Mania is a sweeping account of financial speculation and its consequences, from ancient Rome to the Meltdown of 2008. Acclaimed journalist and investor Bob Swarup tracks the history of speculative fevers caused by the appearance of new profitable investment opportunities; the new assets created and the increasing self-congratulatory euphoria that drives them to unsustainable highs, all fed by an illusion of insight and newly minted experts; the unexpected catalysts that eventually lead to panic; the inevitable crash as investors scramble to withdraw their funds from the original market and any other that might resemble it; and finally, the brevity of financial memory that allows us to repeat the cycle without ever critically evaluating the drivers of this endless cycle.
In short, it is the story of what makes us human.

About this title

About the Author:

Bob Swarup is a respected investor, thought leader and commentator on financial markets, investments and regulation. Born in India in 1977, he was educated in England. He holds an MA from the University of Cambridge, two Master degrees, and a Phd in cosmology from Imperial College London. He has managed investments at financial institutions, sat on the boards of hedge funds and private equity firms, worked closely with leading think tanks, advised policymakers and industry alike, and is an award-winning journalist. He lives in London.

Review:

[An] excellent new book, which looks at booms, panics and busts down the ages. ... [The] message is that nothing is really new. Put together people, credit and structural fragility and you create the perfect conditions for a crisis. ...Swarup's book comes out at an opportune moment. ...As [he] notes, humans don't like to stand still.
- Larry Elliott, The Guardian

[Swarup] traces the same foibles of human nature that caused financial disaster in the Roman Empire to those that contributed to the most recent global economic woes. ...[His] analysis of the human elements make his work compelling and comprehensible, as he expertly surfs the crests and troughs of the economy and examines the behavior that contributes to the bumpy ride. ...If Swarup's analysis didn't hit so close to home, this title would be a cozier read...well worth reading for its engaging and long-reaching investigation of what fuels money mania and why it matters. - Library Journal

Swarup discusses the recent financial debacle of 2008, noting that "as defaults soared ...the finger-pointing began." The biggest surprise is why this crisis was a surprise at all, given recent credit crunches, and he reaches back through the centuries to report that banking bailouts even occurred in ancient Greece and Rome. ... [His] final commentary includes "No One Is Too Big to Fail," "We Need to Restore Failure as an Option at All Levels," and "We Need to Create the Right Incentives." An enlightening book. - Booklist

About this edition

• Publisher: Bloomsbury Press
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1608198413
• ISBN 13: 9781608198412
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320