Madoff: The Final Word

I had heard a Fresh Air interview with Richard Behar about the largest Ponzi scheme in American history. I of course had heard about Bernie Madoff and knew the basics, but this book provided more details and insight into it.

I found the audiobook on Libby and decided to give it a listen. I mention that because the audiobook contains recorded phone calls between Richard and Bernie. Richard interviewed and communicated with Bernie while Bernie was still alive and in prison.

The book goes into detail on who the different people were who were involved in running the scheme as well as how Bernie L. Madoff Investment Securities (BLMIS) was setup and how it managed to avoid scrutiny for so long.

Despite the sheer magnitude of the losses, I still have a hard time feeling sorry for some (not all) of the victims as some seemed smart enough to have known something was up. The book talks about this, as well as why it was difficult for a undermanned SEC to learn about this and take action.

As someone who is interested in the inner workings of Wall Street and finance, this was a particularly interesting look into one of the more notorious crimes in Wall Street history.