William D. Cohan
Encyclopedia
William D. Cohan is a contributing editor at Fortune, and award-winning former investigative newspaper reporter based in Raleigh, North Carolina
, who worked on Wall Street
for seventeen years. He spent six years at Lazard Frères in New York and later became a managing director at JP Morgan Chase. He lives in New York City and Columbia County, New York. He is the brother of Peter Cohan
. He graduated from Duke University
.
.
His book House of Cards, describing the last days of Bear Stearns & Co., was published in March 2009. The book has received good reviews, described as a "masterfully reported account" by Tim Rutten
in the Los Angeles Times.
In an op-ed article in the New York Times, Cohan said in March 2009 that Bear Stearns CEO Alan Schwartz and Lehman CEO Dick Fuld had engaged in a "tsunami of excuses" when they were responsible for their firms' collapse. In another op-ed written with Sandy B. Lewis in June he said that the current economic crisis is not over yet, and that "many of the fixes that the Obama administration has proposed will do little to address them and may make them worse."
His 2011 book, Money and Power
: How Goldman Sachs Came to Rule the World, examines the historical role and influence of Goldman Sachs
. (He appeared on the Daily Show on 28
April 2011 to discuss the book.
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
, who worked on Wall Street
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
for seventeen years. He spent six years at Lazard Frères in New York and later became a managing director at JP Morgan Chase. He lives in New York City and Columbia County, New York. He is the brother of Peter Cohan
Peter Cohan
Peter Cohan is an American businessman, author, venture capitalist, and financier.-Education:Cohan earned a B.A. in art history in 1979 and a B.S. in electrical engineering in 1980 from Swarthmore College. He did graduate work in computer science at MIT and earned an MBA from Wharton School of the...
. He graduated from Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
.
Books
In 2007 he published The Last Tycoons: The Secret History of Lazard Frères & Co., about Lazard Frères. It won the 2007 Financial Times and Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year AwardFinancial Times and Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year Award
Financial Times and Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year Award is an annual award given to the best business book of the year as determined by the Financial Times and Goldman Sachs. It aims to find the book that has ‘the most compelling and enjoyable insight into modern business issues.’ The...
.
His book House of Cards, describing the last days of Bear Stearns & Co., was published in March 2009. The book has received good reviews, described as a "masterfully reported account" by Tim Rutten
Tim Rutten
Tim Rutten is an American journalist who worked for the Los Angeles Times between 1971 and 2011.He started at the paper as a copy editor in the View section. Before becoming a columnist for the Calendar section in 2002, he held a number of positions, including city bureau chief and editorial writer...
in the Los Angeles Times.
In an op-ed article in the New York Times, Cohan said in March 2009 that Bear Stearns CEO Alan Schwartz and Lehman CEO Dick Fuld had engaged in a "tsunami of excuses" when they were responsible for their firms' collapse. In another op-ed written with Sandy B. Lewis in June he said that the current economic crisis is not over yet, and that "many of the fixes that the Obama administration has proposed will do little to address them and may make them worse."
His 2011 book, Money and Power
Money and Power
Money and Power: How Goldman Sachs Came to Rule the World is a 2011 book written by William D. Cohan. It chronicles the history of Goldman Sachs, from its founding to the subprime mortgage crisis of 2008....
: How Goldman Sachs Came to Rule the World, examines the historical role and influence of Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...
. (He appeared on the Daily Show on 28
April 2011 to discuss the book.
External links
- http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/episodes/2007/04/19#segment77497Author discusses his book "The Last Tycoons" on The Leonard LopateLeonard LopateLeonard Lopate is host of the public radio talk show The Leonard Lopate Show, broadcast on WNYC. He first broadcast on WKCR, the college radio station of Columbia University—where his brother Phillip was a student—then later at WBAI, before ultimately moving to WNYC. -Biography:Lopate came to...
Show] - http://marketplace.publicradio.org/shows/2007/04/02/PM200704026.htmlAuthor discusses his book "The Last Tycoons" on Marketplace (radio program)Marketplace (radio program)Marketplace is a radio program that focuses on business, the economy, and events that influence them. Hosted by Kai Ryssdal, the show is produced and distributed by American Public Media, in association with the University of Southern California...
with Kai RyssdalKai RyssdalKai Ryssdal is an American radio journalist best known as the host of Marketplace, a business program that airs weekdays on U.S. public radio stations....
] - Video (with audio-only available) conversation with Cohan about Wall Street excesses on Bloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tv is a political, world events, philosophy, and science video blog discussion site in which the participants take part in an active back and forth conversation via webcam which is then broadcast online to viewers...