More than ever there is meaning to this story. The author gives us an insider's view of the very first days of mortgage securitization. It is difficult not to be taken aback about how this market was originally designed to match the interests of the few who initiated it. At the time, the technical advance in the Fixed Income area of the S bros such that they could trick the Federal decision taker in whatever advantaged them. Only an insider could give such a microscopic description of greed and excess but also how financial innovation occurs to a young salesperson. And only an insider could point out the precise point when the decline started, up to the consequences we know now.
What is funny though is that figures will look quite modest to anyone familiar with finance today. I learned a lot reading this book which was given to me when I was a trainee in fixed income; however it really puts aside the genuine value added that financial industry has once striped of excesses, moral hazard.