Wall Street Values: Business Ethics and the Global Financial Crisis - Hardcover

Santoro, Michael A.; Strauss, Ronald J.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1107017351 ISBN 13: 9781107017351

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 2012

Synopsis

This timely book answers complex and perplexing questions raised by Wall Street's role in the financial crisis. What are the economic and moral connections between Wall Street and the overall economy? How did we arrive at this point in history where our most powerful financial institutions thwart rather than promote free markets, prosperity, and even social cohesion? Can the fractured relationship between Wall Street and Main Street be repaired? Wall Street Values chronicles the transformation of Wall Street's business model from serving clients to proprietary trading and explains how this shift undermined the ethical foundations of the modern financial industry. Michael A. Santoro and Ronald J. Strauss argue that post-millennial Wall Street is not only "too big to fail" but also a threat to the economy even when it succeeds. They describe how, more than a year before the government acknowledged the financial crisis, Wall Street icon Goldman Sachs saved itself by misleading its clients and impeding the information flow needed for the efficient functioning of free markets, thereby prolonging the mortgage bubble and adding to the financial and human cost of the crisis. They also present a nuanced critique of the government's role not only for the economic miscalculations leading to financial deregulation but also for failing to check the irrational exuberance of 2007 and 2008. Looking to the future, Santoro and Strauss make a compelling case for vigorous government enforcement of the Dodd-Frank Act in the face of Wall Street's opposition. They also argue, however, that effective government regulation is not enough; economic prosperity will be sustainable only if Wall Street professionals themselves begin an urgently needed conversation about their values and business ethics.

About this title

About the Author:

Michael A. Santoro is a Professor of Management and Global Business at Rutgers Business School in New Jersey, where he has taught since 1996. Professor Santoro's books include China 2020: How Western Business Can - and Should - Influence Social and Political Change in the Coming Decade (2010), Ethics and the Pharmaceutical Industry (Cambridge University Press, 2005, co-edited with Thomas M. Gorrie) and Profits and Principles: Global Capitalism and Human Rights in China (2000). A frequent commentator in the mainstream media on business ethics, he holds a JD from New York University School of Law and a PhD in public policy from Harvard University.

Review:

'The financial crisis has been examined from every angle except this one: the ethical lapses that led up to it. Time spent reading this highly original book is time well spent. It will make you think.' Alan Blinder, Princeton University

'There are many fine accounts of what happened during the financial crisis, but Santoro and Strauss stand[s] out because it brings to bear a refined ethical sense to the questions raised by the crisis. This is an excellent book to foster deep thinking about what happened.' Timothy Fort, George Washington University

'Wall Street Values probes a crucial yet neglected topic: the role of ethics in the run-up to the financial meltdown of 2008. A must-read for all who care about the health of our financial system and America's future prosperity.' Lynne Paine, Harvard University

About this edition

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1107017351
• ISBN 13: 9781107017351
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 244