Psychology of Money
In 2009, award-winning journalist Morgan Housel was awash in information about the 2008 financial collapse. Yet, try as he might, he could not find the answer to the question: “Why did people behave the way they did?” This is what led him to start formulating notes for what became a blog, and eventually a book titled The Psychology of Money: Timeless lessons on wealth, greed, and happiness (Harriman House, 2020). The book was launched on September 8. “What is a person’s relationship with greed and fear? The psychological side of investing is the most important side,” Housel said, “because if you […]
Origins of Canadian Banking
The financial crisis of 2007-2008 triggered a worldwide recession. The American and European banking systems experienced massive losses, takeovers, and taxpayer-funded bailouts. Lehman Brothers, Northern Rock, European debt crisis, … and the after-effects are still being felt. Canada’s banking system did have some shaky moments, as a recently published analysis of its asset-backed commercial paper (ABCP) predicament showed. On the whole, however, Canada’s banks withstood the financial crisis relatively well and the financial system maintained its liquidity, solvency, and profitability. The history of the divergence in the Canadian and American banking systems is recounted in a new book. From […]
“A Series of Deals, Lost 18 Times”
“This book is about a black swan event that turned out to be the largest restructuring in Canadian history,” the moderator Marlene Puffer said as she welcomed dozens of people to a breakfast book launch, held at the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto on November 9, 2016. In financial markets, the year 2007-8 was a precarious time—“things could have gone either way,” she noted. Ultimately, there was a happy ending: the value of billions of dollars of asset-backed commercial paper (ABCP) in Canada was preserved and most investors were made whole. “This is the book that tells the […]