Rogue Trader [Paperback]

Nick Leeson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 5, 1997

Pressure, pace, error: ROGUE TRADER grippingly tells the inside story of how the greatest gamble ever made rocked the City of London to its foundations. Crackling with tension, in a narrative as crisp as any thriller, Nick Leeson's autobiographical account reveals how he 'lost' GBP800 millions as General Manager of Baring Futures Singapore through foolhardy speculations on behalf of his employer, Barings Brothers - the world's first merchant bank. As Leeson's audacity escalated, so did his losses while London continued to pour money down the drain. ROGUE TRADER is a dazzlingly revealing story of a man shaped by events that proved beyond his control.

Editorial Reviews

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 TIEMS

About the Author

Nick Leeson was born in Watford in 1967 and after a stint at Morgan Stanley joined Baring Brothers in 1989. His immediate success led to his transfer to Singapore. The rest is history. In August 1998 it was revealed that he has contracted cancer.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Warner (June 5, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0751517089
• ISBN-13: 978-0751517088
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1 x 7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #372,067 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Leeson's Lessons, October 23, 2007

By 

Jerry Sanchez (New York) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rogue Trader (Paperback)

As it turns out, Nick Leeson does not seem to be a terrible guy, although he single-handedly caused the collapse of one of the oldest banks in the world in early 1995, Barings Bank. I just don't understand how he could let the 88888 account continue for so long once the losses started building. Why not confess? What started with some mistakes and an attempt to hide them soon took on a life of its own and grew out of control. Sure, Barings should have had more internal controls and could have monitored Leeson better, but to think that a young kid from suburban London would outwardly forge reports and signatures to cover his trail is unbelievable. It was fraud and he knew it.

This book is an interesting account of the collapse of one of Britain's oldest and most powerful merchant banks by Nick Leeson while trading derivatives on the Singapore, Nikkei and Osaka stock exchanges. Leeson recreated conversations and the year leading up to his capture with amazing detail, all of which makes for interesting reading. I was interested in the underlying reasons for the collapse of Barings, and thus, the book did drag on a bit. But once Leeson realized he would be discovered and fled Singapore with his wife in late February 1995, the story really got exciting. All in all, an interesting self-account of how covering one's mistakes will lead to lies upon lies, which, as it did with Leeson, will ultimately lead to disaster.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good reading, August 21, 2005

By 

I. Mitringa (Slovakia, Europe) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rogue Trader (Paperback)

If you want to know the reasons and the background of the fall of Barings bank, I recommend it. You will be surprised what were the levels of control at that time in the most respectful bank in Europe and in the world. Nowadays it's really hard to imagine that one simple back office manager could lead the whole bank giant into trashes. Good reading and relaxing with a flair of adventure.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best reads I've had in a long time, September 9, 2007

By 

Eddy (amazon.com) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rogue Trader (Paperback)

The tale of Nick Leeson's catastrophic trading that brought about the collapse of Baring's bank is perhaps the most famous scandal in banking history. It is also an absolutely fascinating read. Although the film version of the story is gripping and intense, nothing can compare to the written word when portraying the terror, panic and inner turmoil that Leeson went through as his 88888 account losses spun out of control.

Far from being a cold clinical recounting of a messy financial scandal, Leeson's book is a far more personal tale. The stories about his struggles at Barings are interspersed with tales about his personal life in Singapore as well as his marriage to his wife Lisa. Indeed as his professional problems began to mount, Lisa became increasingly the rock that he clung to for salvation.

Some of the ways in which Leeson's actions went undetected are simply mind boggling. It is astonishing that some of the higher ups at Barings didn't get prosecuted for criminal negligence, but I suppose that's the way of the business world. Even if you have already seen the movie, I wouuld strongly advise you to read this fascinating book, as it is impossible to beat the written account of Leeson's roller coaster ride.