This is the true story of a top Wall Street player who chronicles his own transformation from a straight arrow believer in the markets, to a jaded critic who reveals how the insiders game is really played. Dan Reingold was one of the top analysts on Wall Street. Specializing in telecom companies like WorldCom and Qwest, Reingold believed in Wall Street, and was a part of it. But in this insiders memoir, Reingold describes how his enthusiasm gradually gave way to disgust when he saw how deeply corrupt Wall Street really was. Because big investors had the advantage of inside information, which companies shared with more accommodating analysts, Reingold saw how a straight arrow like himself was doomed to fail. Ultimately, Reingold comes to terms with the corrupted, insiders game that was his profession. In the tradition of Liar's Poker, this is a lively, insiders account of how things really work on Wall Street. To complete his tale, Reingold even sat through the 2005 trial of one of the most spectacular losers of the 1990s, fallen WorldCom CEO Bernie Ebbers, who Reingold knew in his heyday.
This is a very personal story, and a warts-and-all look at the investing business that is extremely relevant in today's post-scandal world.