Lehman Brothers

Oonagh McDonald is an international financial regulatory expert. She was a member of the UK parliament for Thurrock in Essex (1976-87) and a member of the front-bench Treasury team from 1983-87. She is the author of several books, including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: Turning the American Dream into a Nightmare (2012). She was awarded the CBE in 1998, for services to financial regulation and business

'Oonagh McDonald has written a clear and analytical account of what happened and why. She has a reader friendly style and a sharp eye for details.'Lord Meghnad Desai, Labour Peer, House of Lords'This balanced, lively, fact-filled and lucid examination of the factors that produced Lehman's failure is teeming with insightful analysis. It weaves together little-known facts to dispel commonly believed myths. If you are going to read one thing to gain a deep understanding of why and how Lehman collapsed, this is it.'Charles Calomiris is Henry Kaufman Professor of Financial Institutions at ColumbiaBusiness School, USA'This is a balanced, informed account of the collapse of Lehman Brothers that draws on recently released information to give a full picture of the sequence of events surrounding the crisis and its aftermath. It takes a very comprehensive view and examines the roles of asset valuation, corporate governance, law, regulation and financial theory in the story and surely will be of great interest to all readers with either a professional or general interest in the financial markets'Professor Robert Hudson, University of Hull'The demise of Lehman triggered a whole host of unforeseen consequences and with hindsight some have questioned whether it was wise to let Lehman go. This book is the first to use primary sources to look at the detail of the event and that fateful weekend. This is a very well researched and timely book on a topic that will be debated for decades to come.'Kevin Keasey, Professor of Accounting and Finance, Leeds University Business School, UK.

• 1 From cotton trader to investment banker: 1844-20082 From hubris to nemesis: January to September 2008 3 The fateful weekend 4 Regulating the 'Big Five' 5 The largest bankruptcy in American history 6 The destruction of value 7 Lehman's valuation of its assets 8 Measuring value 9 Monitoring value 10 Chasing a chimera? Appendix 1: The Lehman Brothers Board of Directors in 2007Appendix 2: The Lehman Brothers Corporate Structure Index