Rogue Trader
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Amazon.co.uk Review
When Nick Leeson was arrested in 1995 for bringing Barings Bank to its proverbial knees, it initially seemed as if he had single handedly crushed this most well-established and well-respected financial institution, and indeed it was he alone who found himself in a Singapore jail serving time for deceiving the auditors of Barings in a way "likely to cause harm to their reputation" and to cheating SIMEX (Singapore International Money Exchange). In Rogue Trader Leeson tells his own story with more than a hint of the bitterness--and, at times, suspended belief--of an ordinary Joe from Watford made scapegoat by a cast of characters who may not have been guilty by design, but certainly appear to be guilty of simply not adhering to the basic procedures which would have picked up any discrepancies long before any real damage was done. Hard to feel sorry for such wheeler- dealers, perhaps, and certainly hard to feel sorry for Leeson, but he manages to successfully tell an incredible story which moves at breakneck speed from his appointment as General Manager for Barings in Singapore to his fast and furious downfall, which began as a simple cover-up of a mistake by an inexperienced member of staff and ended in multi-million pound fraud, with earth-shattering repercussions across the financial markets of the world. Anyone who ever wondered how one man could do so much damage will find the explanation between the pages of Rogue Trader, but more than that they will also find a hugely compelling, tense and decidedly hair- raising story that defies imagination to the point where, if it had been written as fiction no one would ever believe it. --Susan Harrison
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Review
Hair-raising...as revealing a document about contemporary Britain as all 2,000 pages of the Scott Report - OBSERVER (The story of Leeson and his bride has it all: filthy lucre, brazen abuse of power, and boy-meets-girl romance - SUNDAY TIMES )
Simultaneously entertaining and appalling - FINANCIAL TIMES ('When Nick Leeson was arrested in 1995 for bringing Barings Bank to its proverbial knees, it initially seemed as if he had single handedly crushed this most well-established and well-respected financial institution, and indeed it was he alone who found hi )
Susan Harrison, AMAZON.CO.UK REVIEW --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Simultaneously entertaining and appalling - FINANCIAL TIMES ('When Nick Leeson was arrested in 1995 for bringing Barings Bank to its proverbial knees, it initially seemed as if he had single handedly crushed this most well-established and well-respected financial institution, and indeed it was he alone who found hi )
Susan Harrison, AMAZON.CO.UK REVIEW --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I was stuck in an airport lounge with a delayed flight and a teeny bookshop, so I picked up this, thinking "aha! smug city twat has a miserable time! I'll enjoy this!" In fact, the honesty and sheer guilt of the book completely turned me around. When the SFO won't let him do his sentence in England to save EMBARRASSMENT, it's even tragic- particularly, too, the homages to his wife, who of course subsequently divorced him.
It's like being seven again and doing something bad and waiting for your father to come home- except he felt that way for *two years*. This book reads like a car crash- gripping, horrifying and difficult to keep your eyes away from. Recommended.
12 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Nick Leesons interpretation of the events that lead to Baring's demise is gripping and funny.
His description of his rise from a back office settlement clerk is remarkable if only for the simple fact that it happened in the first place.
He takes you on a intense and exciting ride from the start of the book. It's obvious that he made mistakes and the consequences lead to many people being unemployed. But, doesn't the fact that it was allowed to happen make you think on a wider scale? Were old Merchant Banks chasing the 'quick buck' without much knowledge? Would it have happened in another bank? Then ask if it was a mixture of Nick Leesons greed and Barings terrible infrastructure.
His description of his rise from a back office settlement clerk is remarkable if only for the simple fact that it happened in the first place.
He takes you on a intense and exciting ride from the start of the book. It's obvious that he made mistakes and the consequences lead to many people being unemployed. But, doesn't the fact that it was allowed to happen make you think on a wider scale? Were old Merchant Banks chasing the 'quick buck' without much knowledge? Would it have happened in another bank? Then ask if it was a mixture of Nick Leesons greed and Barings terrible infrastructure.
Terrible mistakes, written in a excitingly brilliant way.
I definitely recommend this book.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
There's always something compelling about reading someone's account of getting themselves deeper and deeper into mortal trouble. Then add the racy dark humour that is peppered throughout the book as Nick Leeson looks back on his futile attempts to rectify his increasingly desperate trading situation, whilst those around him are oblivious to the impending disaster. The narrative cleverly reveals just enough detail to vividly depict the general atmosphere of things without being bogged down in flowery descriptions, helping to maintain a good pace.
This is a classic story of a classic dilemma - what to do if you (or someone you are responsible for) makes a serious mistake. Do you face the immediate consequences and come clean with those affected by the mistake, or do you work around it and try and remedy the mistake before anyone finds out, whilst risking making things even worse? Whatever the morals of the decisions Nick made in response to such a dilemma, one just can't help but empathise and be swept up in his predicament.
The fact that it all happened for real makes this book so much more gripping than some trashy corporate thriller. You are likely to finish it within days, if not in a single sitting as I did. And read it again only a few months later.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
why didn't we learn from this fella?
why o why didn't we learn from his mistakes. i don't want to rehash old news - but if you have been living on mars for the past 20 odd years nick leeson bought down barings bank... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Gcrikey
Okay but predictably self-serving
It is certainly a fascinating story and it is interesting to get Leeson's side of the story. He certainly isn't the only one to blame but I did get the impression that he wasn't... Read more
Published 17 months ago by The Emperor
Paid to gamble
I read this book as preparation for a lunch I was having with Nick Leeson himself.
The book highlighted to me that banking has a side to it that really should not be allowed. Read more
The book highlighted to me that banking has a side to it that really should not be allowed. Read more
Published 22 months ago by B. Williamson
Childish, Self Justifying Screed, But Still Immensely Interesting
Viewed purely as a work of literature, this book falls at almost every hurdle. As a character, Leeson fails to capture the reader's sympathy or to demonstrate much real insight... Read more
Published on 5 April 2010 by N. W. Field
Rogue Trader
Fascinating read. If even 10% of what Nick Leeson says is true, Barings got what they deserved. Particularly interesting to read this in the light of what's happening in the... Read more
Published on 7 Jun 2009 by J. S. Partington
Extraordinary
The extraordinary tale of how one man brought Britain's oldest bank to the point of collapse, without any of his superiors even being aware of the situation. Read more
Published on 7 Jan 2005 by R. P. Sedgwick
Bank Gambling Without Limit
Nick Leeson seems to have been a chap without much formal education (even by today's piss-poor standards), no huge curiosity about the world, but some cunning and a lot of facility... Read more
Published on 18 Aug 2004 by Ian Millard
Time has granted disenchantemnt
With the fever of Barings' collapse in mind this book may have seemed fascinating. At a distance of a few years we can tell that Nick Leeson spends most of the book whining that it... Read more
Published on 14 April 2003 by Ali Robertson
Completely absorbing
Nick Leeson's account of the collapse of Barings is gripping reading. I couldn't put it down even though I knew most of the story, having read the newspaper coverage and Stephen... Read more
Published on 22 May 2001 by Mr. Paul V. Temperton
Black Humour
I picked this book up at Heathrow and read it, appropriately enough, on a long haul flight to Singapore. Read more
Published on 5 April 2001
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