COMPLICIT – How Greed and Collusion made the Credit Crisis Unstoppable by Mark Gilbert.

The following Book Review has been sponsored by FSB Associates

The rulers of the exchange of mankind’s goods have failed. There must be an end to a conduct in banking and in business which too often has given to a sacred trust the likeness of callous and selfish wrongdoing.

~ President Franklin D. Roosevelt

For every crisis there is a critique. The crisis that led to our current economic situation is no exception. We have been informed of what happened but we’re still shaking our heads. Anyone that works in Banking/Mortgage/Wall Street has been made out to be the scapegoat (whether right or wrong). So if we know who the culprits are, why isn’t anyone in jail? To me that means we really don’t know what happened. But if more books like Complicit are written we just might. Mark Gilbert, bureau chief for Bloomberg News in London, has written a very detailed book on the crisis. With so many books out there, sometimes it’s hard to separate them. What makes this book different is Gilbert’s approach to the subject matter. Because he is based in the United Kingdom, he provides the view “from across the pond.” Because we live in America, sometimes we are short-sighted to the world around us. This economic crisis didn’t just make ripples in the Midwest but the Far East. Factors in China have more influence on the U.S. economy than we can imagine. Gilbert provided a behind the scenes look at this “Global Economic Crisis.” I liked his detailed approach in explaining financial terms and processes. I always feel that’s important because most people don’t know about financial instruments (as proven by these floods of bad mortgages in America). As for the title of the book, it matches the content perfectly. If you felt that this crisis could have been prevented, you’re correct. If you felt that people were motivated by greed, you’re correct. If you didn’t believe in bank regulation before reading this book, afterward you will be a staunch supporter of it. I especially recommend this book for students with majors that involve international subjects. Overall it was a good read.