The Match King

Ivar Kreuger, the Financial Genius Behind a Century of Wall Street Scandals

De: Frank Partnoy

Narrado por: L. J. Ganser

At the height of the roaring 20s, Swedish émigré Ivar Kreuger made a fortune raising money in America and loaning it to Europe in exchange for matchstick monopolies. His enterprise was a rare success story throughout the Great Depression.

Yet after Kreuger's suicide in 1932, the true nature of his empire emerged. Driven by success to adopt ever-more perilous practices, Kreuger had turned to shell companies in tax havens, fudged accounting figures, off-balance-sheet accounting, even forgery. He created a raft of innovative financial products - many of them precursors to instruments wreaking havoc in today's markets. When his Wall Street empire collapsed, millions went bankrupt.

Frank Partnoy, a frequent commentator on financial disaster for the Financial Times, The New York Times, NPR, and CBS's 60 Minutes, recasts the life story of a remarkable yet forgotten genius in ways that force us to rethink our ideas about the wisdom of crowds, the invisible hand, and the free and unfettered market.

©2009 Frank Partnoy (P)2009 Audible, Inc.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"A fascinating depiction of a man and his era (Greta Garbo makes memorable cameos), this book is a snapshot of a time all too familiar now: a speculative real estate bubble, unbridled consumer spending, investors buying derivatives based on sketchy information and a Wall Street operating by its own rules." ( Publishers Weekly)

Among the best historical listens

A well read tale and unbelievable history that I teuly cannot believe I have never heard of this having actually happened. If you were/are on the fence of deciding your next book, then worry no more. Really a high quality story line with great detail! Highest recommendation!

Great Topics, Interesting Man, OK Book

I like the story of Ivar Kreuger, the financial innovations he created, and the time of the roaring 20s.
However, the book itself doesn't have a good flow, doesn't follow a consistent timeline (jumps back and then forward again), and repeats itself on some topics.
At many points I found that I stopped caring on the particulars of the negotiations and financial engineering details.
The narrator didn't help. Would take long inhaling pauses that bothered me. And talked like someone from the time period telling you the story on an old time radio.

Overall a good story, just not well executed IMO.

Financial Genius or Con Artist?

In 1920 Swedish businessman Ivar Kreuger (1880-1932) controlled most of the world’s safety match production, as well as mining, timber, media, banking and construction industries. He was one of the richest men in the world. He took advantage of the financial state of European countries after World War I and managed to push aside J. P. Morgan and Company to become the lender of choice to sovereign governments. He made a deal in 1929 the week the stock market collapsed to lend German 125 million dollars in return for the safety match monopoly that lasted until 1983.

Partnoy asks is the rise and fall of Kreuger a story of what happens to a person when ambition overreaches and maybe edges into the world of fraud? Or is it a tale of a premeditated confidence trick perpetrated by Kreuger?

Partnoy is a Professor of Law at the University of California San Diego and a historian who has studied Kreuger extensively and written a number of books about him. The first part of the book reads like a case for the prosecution. Sort of makes one think of Bernie Madoff but Kreuger was a real business man with real business and most often stayed within the letter of the law. But one must remember how lax the laws were in the 1920s. The collapse of the Kreuger Empire was responsible for the implementation of the 1933-34 security laws in the United States.

The book is meticulously researched and well written. It is more of a business history than a biography. Some of the businesses Kreuger founded or invested in are still standing today such as Swedish Match Company and Ericsson. L. J. Ganser narrated the book.

Intriguing Story About a Financial Genius

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I would recommend it. The author seems pretty objective in assessing the good and bad of Kreuger, and providing us with evidence. A big plus. It's interesting hearing the story of IK and how he made his fortune. Amazing how he crashed through barriers, created businesses and wealth, and invented new financial instruments.

But, while IK was a genius, he also had some really bad premises that destroyed him: he accepted government involvement in the economy, he agreed with the idea of government monopolies, he engaged in some fraud, deciet and dishonesty. Would have been interesting, if he had better premises, seeing how he turned out and what would have happened.

I'd have liked, though, to have had more identification of what, psychologically and morally, made him wealthy and what conflicts he had to work through to achieve the successes he did. In other words, I'd have liked some rational philosophic analysis.

Any additional comments?

Interesting that, like Steve Jobs, IK had a practiced, intense stare. But, unlike Jobs, he did not focus only on making great, economical products. In both cases, the scale on which they work brings out their premises -- premises other people have, too, but which are not seen much since most people don't live large and develop the consequence of their ideas so fullly and broadly; lots of people just sit around and mope through life.

Fascinating

As a banker and CPA I found the book enthralling. The characters, and what they schemed and accomplished could have been written last week. I never knew that such sophisticated and complicated financing existed in the 1920's. The author describes the financial details so anyone can understand them. I think he could have better developed the various national economies that Kreuger did business in better. His main focus is on Kreuger and at times it appears he is a universe onto himself apart from world affairs. It seems the world depression was just one of many events that get a mention. One does not get an impression that Kreuger, with all of his financial acumen and personal knowledge of world leaders could have foretold what would happen.
I found the coda far fetched. The author seems to feel that all aspects of Kreuger's death have to be explained or theorized upon. Since none of his scenarios can be verified they take on the aura of the worst of sensationalist tabloid journalism.
Aside from the very last chapter, I found the book fascinating, useful and highly recommend it.