Corporate scandals : the many faces of greed : the great heist, financial bubbles and the absence of virtue / Kenneth R. Gray, Larry A. Frieder, George W. Clark, Jr.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

CH. 1: CORPORATE SCANDALS : Introduction -- The Need to Restore Trust and Integrity -- Root Causes of the Current Crisis -- Remedies to the Current Crisis -- Corruption and Greed on Wall Street -- Overview of the Text. CH. 2: A SHORT HISTORY OF BUSINESS SCANDALS : The Mississippi Company Bubble of France -- The South Sea Bubble of England -- Age of the Railways -- Railroad Scandals -- Railway Stocks in the U.S. & the Stock Market Crash of 1873 -- Jay Cooke-America's First Investment Banker -- The Ponzi Pyramid Scheme of Finance -- The Martin Act and State Blue Sky Laws -- The Boom Era of the 1920s -- A Respected Executive & the Middle West Utilities Holding Company -- From Popularity to Obscurity-A Hard Fall -- A Fall from Grace with a Rebound -- Government Efforts to Address the Stock Market Crash-Glass-Steagall -- More Scandals-McKesson & Robbins Company -- Savings & Loan Scandals -- Final Thoughts. CH. 3: CORPORATE MALFEASANCE: FRAUD, REGULATORY LAXITY AND THEFT : Major American Corporations Lose Their Way -- Enron -- Tyco -- WorldCom -- Global Crossing -- Qwest -- Adelphia -- ImClone -- Scandals Appear in Europe -- Missing Oil Reserves At Shell -- Royal Ahold -- Parmalat -- Europe Readies Itself for Future Scandals -- International Reactions -- Conclusion. CH. 4: ADDRESSING CORPORATE SCANDALS: The Sarbanes-Oxley Act as a Panacea? : The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) -- CEO/CFO Reporting Certification -- Disgorgement of CEO and CFO Compensation and Profits -- Ban on Personal Loans to Executive Officers and Directors -- Dramatically Accelerated Reporting of Trades by Insiders -- Prohibition on Insider Trades During Pension Fund Blackout Periods -- New Audit Committee Standards -- HealthSouth: An Early Test of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act -- Sarbanes-Oxley Already Paying Dividends -- Demise of Author Andersen -- The Plight of Other Accounting Firms -- Freddie Mac Suppresses Profits -- Macro Effects of Corporate Malfeasance -- Economic Recovery Held Hostage -- Assessment and Final Thoughts. CH. 5: SCANDAL SPREADS TO WALL STREET : Pressures Mount in Washington -- SEC Chairman, Harvey Pitt, at Center of Controversy -- Bush's Reaction: Status Quo? -- Wall Street Tackled by New York Attorney General -- The Martin Act Addresses Wall Street Wrongdoing -- Eliot Spitzer-The Public's Hero -- Reforms Started: The Global Settlement for Investment Banks -- Penalties, Disgorgement, Funds for Independent Research, and Investor Education -- Summary of the Enforcement Actions -- Celebrity Investment Analysts Investigated -- Henry Blodget's Resignation: E-mails Can Come Back to Haunt You! -- Mary Meeker Remains Unindicted -- Jack Grubman: Permanently Barred from the Securities Industry -- Frank Quattrone: The Master of Technology IPOs -- Summary of Global Settlement -- The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE): Another Self-Regulation Failure -- Richard Grasso: From Hero to Goat -- Carl McCall's Role -- John Reed Begins Work -- Violations of "Trade Through Rules" -- Final Thoughts and Conclusion.

CH. 6: MUTUAL FUNDS SCANDALS: MORE THAN A FEW BAD APPLES : Mutual Fund "Late Trading" and "Market Timing" Scandals -- The First Domino: Canary Capital Partners -- Bank of America-Nations Funds Family -- Putnam Investments -- The Strong Funds -- Janus Capital Group -- Massachusetts Financial Services Company (MFS) -- Alliance Capital Management -- Other Prominent Funds Involved -- Mutual Fund Fees Questioned -- Illegal Sales Practices-Directed Brokerage Businesses -- Fund Trustees As Chihuahuas -- Fidelity's Johnson Argues Against Proposed Board Reform -- Commission Bundling and Soft Dollar Payments -- Malfeasance at Insurance Companies -- Funds Withdrawal and the Effect on Funds Size -- SEC Reform -- Final Thoughts. CH. 7: EXECUTIVE PERVERSION OF FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT : Agency Theory -- The Agency Problem in Full Bloom -- Era of LBOs and Junk Bonds -- Options: The Major By-Product of the LBO Movement -- The Economic Boom of the 1990s -- Dividend Conventions Violated -- The Fundamentals of Share Repurchase Strategies -- Buybacks Substituted For Dividends -- The Inappropriate Use of Share Buybacks -- Anything But Chump Change -- At the End of the Day, What Happened? -- A Trillion Plus $ Heist -- What About Agency Theory? -- Concluding Thoughts and Analysis. CH. 8: MARKET SYSTEM AND SOCIETAL INSTITUTIONS CALLED INTO QUESTION : Institutions Establish the Rules of the Game -- The Role of Organizations -- The Market Economy as an Institution -- Public Education is Necessary to Avoid "Atrophied Personalities" -- Transaction Costs and Property Rights Give Rise to Institutions -- Non-Market Institutions that Counter the Negative Effects of the Market -- The Family as an Institution -- The State as an Indispensable Institution -- The Nation and Cultural Institutions -- Professional Associations Let Us Down -- Choices Devoid of Meaning -- Organization Theory: Incentives Versus Leadership -- Spill-Over Effects of the Market -- Executive Compensation: A Simple Disgraceful Process -- Paying for Performance as a Joke -- CEO Compensation Excesses: How Much is Enough? -- Transparency as a Panacea -- Final Thoughts and Analysis. CH. 9: VIRTUOUSNESS: MEDICINE FOR BUSINESS ETHICS : Reflections on the Virtuous Life-Early Philosophies -- The Study of Virtue in History -- Adam Smith Relates Morality to the Invisible Hand -- And Confucius Says! -- Developing Character Through Virtuous Behavior -- Blindsided By Greed -- Education and Business Ethics -- Final Thoughts and Analysis. Appendix: Caux Round Table. Listing of Virtues. CH. 10: CORPORATE SCANDALS: REFLECTIONS : The Six Key Questions -- Who Was the Central Villain?