The Secret History of the South Sea Bubble - The World's First Great Financial Scandal (Paperback, American ed)

&#8220Balen reminds us that the murky tale of the first bubble stands as a cautionary tale for our time." --Lisa Jardine, London Times The greatest financial scandal in history was not the collapse of Enron or WorldCom, not a piece of insider trading from the 1980s, not a hedge fund leveraged to a trillion dollars or a crooked offshore account. It was bigger than all of them combined. So vast, in fact, that it threatened to bankrupt an entire nation's wealth, transforming old monied families with centuries of affluence into the newly destitute. The South Sea Bubble was a share scheme allowed to run crazily out of control. Modeled on the share trading that had just transformed the rival French economy, it was masterminded by an unscrupulous Englishman who saw a route to untold riches selling shares in a valueless company. The South Sea Company was supposed to establish a lucrative trade in silver and spices between England and the Americas. But there was a problem hidden from investors: for almost the entire duration of its sorry history the Company didn't even own a boat. For the first time Malcom Balen tells the dramatic full story of how the fraud was carried out and covered up. Although set in the mazy back alleys of the newly inaugurated financial districts of London and Paris of the 1720s it remains utterly a tale of our times.

General

Imprint:	Fourth Estate
Country of origin:	United Kingdom
Release date:	May 2004
First published:	June 2004
Authors:	Malcolm Balen
Dimensions:	203 x 136 x 15mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	256
Edition:	American ed
ISBN-13:	978-0-00-716178-2
Categories:	Books > Humanities > History > World history > 1750 to 1900 Books > Humanities > History > British & Irish history > General Books > Business & Economics > Finance & accounting > Finance > Investment & securities > Stocks & shares Books > History > British & Irish history > General Books > History > World history > 1750 to 1900 Books > Money & Finance > Investment & securities > Stocks & shares
LSN:	0-00-716178-6
Barcode:	9780007161782

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