Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction : a brief history of fraud in financial markets
The fraud culture
The politics of banking fraud
Modern day financial services fraud (1980-2010)
Reform, re-regulation, and the persistence of fraud
The real estate bubble and bust : the fraud factor
The makings of a meltdown
Beginning of the end : death by derivatives
Can the circle be unbroken?

"Offering a complete perspective on the complicated and sobering impact of fraud in pushing the world's preeminent financial system to disaster on many occasions. Fraud in the Markets: Why It Happens and How to Fight It reveals the genesis of the culture of "anything goes" on Wall Street that fueled the innovation of super-risky asset-backed securities and the financial devastation suffered by institutions that invested in them; the egregiously fraudulent lending practices that engulfed the entire US mortgage industry; the reckless and legally questionable conduct of the captains of Lehman Brothers, Countrywide, Washington Mutual, and other major financial firms just before their collapse; the best and brightest ideas for preventing similiar disasters from recurring; and practical guidelines for protecting your investments and your company from various forms of fraud and deception."--Jacket