Greg Thain's Books

Crash of the Titans

Greed, Hubris, the Fall of Merrill Lynch, and the Near-Collapse of Bank of America

By: Greg Farrell

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Crash of the Titans

Greed, Hubris, the Fall of Merrill Lynch, and the Near-Collapse of Bank of America

By: Greg Farrell

The intimate, fly-on-the wall tale of the decline and fall of an America icon With one notable exception, the firms that make up what we know as Wall Street have always been part of an inbred, insular culture that most people only vaguely understand. The exception was Merrill Lynch, a firm that revolutionized the stock market by bringing Wall Street to Main Street, setting up offices in far-flung cities and towns long ignored by the giants of finance. With its “thundering herd” of financial advisers, perhaps no other business, whether in financial services or elsewhere, so epitomized the American spirit. Merrill Lynch was not only “bullish on America,” it was a big reason why so many average Americans were able to grow wealthy by investing in the stock market. Merrill Lynch was an icon. Its sudden decline, collapse, and sale to Bank of America was a shock. How did it happen? Why did it happen? And what does this story of greed, hubris, and incompetence tell us about the culture of Wall Street that continues to this day even though it came close to destroying the American economy? A culture in which the CEO of a firm losing $28 billion pushes hard to be paid a $25 million bonus. A culture in which two Merrill Lynch executives are guaranteed bonuses of $30 million and $40 million for four months’ work, even while the firm is struggling to reduce its losses by firing thousands of employees. Based on unparalleled sources at both Merrill Lynch and Bank of America, Greg Farrell’s Crash of the Titans is a Shakespearean saga of three flawed masters of the universe. E. Stanley O’Neal, whose inspiring rise from the segregated South to the corner office of Merrill Lynch—where he engineered a successful turnaround—was undone by his belief that a smooth-talking salesman could handle one of the most difficult jobs on Wall Street. Because he enjoyed O’Neal’s support, this executive was allowed to build up an astonishing $30 billion position in CDOs on the firm’s balance sheet, at a time when all other Wall Street firms were desperately trying to exit the business. After O’Neal comes John Thain, the cerebral, MIT-educated technocrat whose rescue of the New York Stock Exchange earned him the nickname “Super Thain.” He was hired to save Merrill Lynch in late 2007, but his belief that the markets would rebound led him to underestimate the depth of Merrill’s problems. Finally, we meet Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis, a street fighter raised barely above the poverty line in rural Georgia, whose “my way or the highway” management style suffers fools more easily than potential rivals, and who made a $50 billion commitment over a September weekend to buy a business he really didn’t understand, thus jeopardizing his own institution. The merger itself turns out to be a bizarre combination of cultures that blend like oil and water, where slick Wall Street bankers suddenly find themselves reporting to a cast of characters straight out of the Beverly Hillbillies. BofA’s inbred culture, which perceived New York banks its enemies, was based on loyalty and a good-ol’-boy network in which competence played second fiddle to blind obedience. Crash of the Titans is a financial thriller that puts you in the theater as the historic events of the financial crisis unfold and people responsible for billion of dollars of other people’s money gamble recklessly to enhance their power and their paychecks or to save their own skins. Its wealth of never-before-revealed information and focus on two icons of corporate America make it the book that puts together all the pieces of the Wall Street disaster.

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514

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ISBN 10

0307717879

ISBN 13

9780307717870

Commercial Law

By: Eric Baskind,Greg Osborne,Lee Roach

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Commercial Law

By: Eric Baskind,Greg Osborne,Lee Roach

Commercial Law' offers a fresh and stimulating account of the subject, thereby helping students better understand this important area of law. It provides thorough coverage of all key aspects of the syllabus, including the law of agency, the sale of goods, international trade, methods of payment, finance and security.

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Page Count

809

Publisher

Oxford University Press

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ISBN 10

0198729359

ISBN 13

9780198729358

FMCG: The Power of Fast-Moving Consumer Goods

By: Greg Thain ,John Bradley

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FMCG: The Power of Fast-Moving Consumer Goods

By: Greg Thain ,John Bradley

This book is a history of the some of the world's most famous brands, from humble beginnings to current exalted status, from smudged, kitchen-table pamphlets to $ multi-million ad campaigns, from backyard experiments to global research. It examines the most recent developments in these glittering trajectories and reveals the very DNA of the brands themselves. Is it mastery of absorbency, the virtuoso integration of acquisitions, developing incomparable consumer trust, the ability to think in decades? All is revealed. If you work in Retail, FMCG, Marketing or Consumer Goods, this is a must–read book. Keywords: FMCG , History, Manufactures, Brands, Innovation, Global, Consumer, Retail, Market, Emerging Markets, Coke, Colgate-Palmolive, Danone, Dean Foods, Estée Lauder, General Mills, Heinz, Henkel, Kellog, Kimberly-Clark, Kraft, L'Oréal, Mars, Nestlé, Procter & Gamble, Pepsi, Reckitt Benckiser, Unilever

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Page Count

525

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First Edition Design Pub.

Published Date

ISBN 10

1622876474

ISBN 13

9781622876471

Store Wars

The Worldwide Battle for Mindspace and Shelfspace, Online and In-store

By: Greg Thain,John Bradley

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Store Wars

The Worldwide Battle for Mindspace and Shelfspace, Online and In-store

By: Greg Thain,John Bradley

The sequel to the highly successful Store Wars: the battle for mindspace and shelfspace published in 1995. The new edition will retain all the strengths of the old book including a comprehensive and complex approach to the consumer & retail market and the interaction between FMCG retailers and manufacturers. The book will be thoroughly revised and updated and will consist of 4 main parts: A section on leading FMCG companies and brands (such as Coke, P&G, Unilever, Nestle, L'Oreal etc.), their marketing and branding strategies in the western markets (USA, Western Europe: UK, France, Germany and others). A section on leading retailers (Wal-Mart, Tesco, Carrefour etc.), their developments and expansion over the last 10 years. A section describing the interaction between retailers and manufacturers, including competition for end-consumers, trade marketing. A section covering the Emerging Markets—the retail landscape in the major developing economies, results of the expansion of major FMCG brands and western retail chains, challenges related to distribution and FMCG marketing in those countries. The book will also discuss the impact of the Global Crisis on the consumer and retail markets as well as predictions and prospects for the future.

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Page Count

178

Publisher

John Wiley & Sons

Published Date

ISBN 10

111837424X

ISBN 13

9781118374245

Crash of the Titans

Greed, Hubris, the Fall of Merrill Lynch, and the Near-Collapse of Bank of America

By: Greg Farrell

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Crash of the Titans

Greed, Hubris, the Fall of Merrill Lynch, and the Near-Collapse of Bank of America

By: Greg Farrell

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N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

514

Publisher

Currency

Published Date

ISBN 10

0307717879

ISBN 13

9780307717870

Book's by Greg Thain

Crash of the Titans

Crash of the Titans

Commercial Law

Commercial Law

FMCG: The Power of Fast-Moving Consumer Goods

FMCG: The Power of Fast-Moving Consumer Goods

Store Wars

Store Wars

Crash of the Titans

Crash of the Titans

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