Meltdown: Scandal, Sleaze and the Collapse of Credit Suisse
By Duncan Mavin

This is more than a richly detailed story about the hubris, corruption and incompetence that doomed Credit Suisse; it's a stark warning to all of us about what happens when we let bankers do what they like'and - Oliver Bullough, bestselling author ofand Butler to the World---For centuries, Swiss banks have served the globe's wealthiest individuals, employing a strict culture of anonymity and gaining massive wealth in the process. But when Credit Suisse collapsed, the veil of secrecy came down and the world was suddenly privy to the corruption, scandal and empty hubris that keep our biggest banks alive.It was a 166-year-old bastion of Swiss banking, amongst the most important and influential financial institutions in the world - but a veneer of high-class service disguised a darker, dirtier reality. From its sterile Zurich headquarters, the bank catered to a clientele that included dictators, drug dealers and former Nazi officers, and helped fleece its own clients out of billions of dollars. This continued for decades, even as Credit Suisse continued to expand, acquiring smaller banks and granting its own executives lucrative bonus contracts.Meltdownand is the story of how the house of cards fell apart. Bloomberg investigative journalist and bestselling author ofand Pyramid of Liesand Duncan Mavin takes readers inside the bank's hushed marble corridors, detailing its secretive culture and the series of increasingly selfish decisions, made by a handful of men at the top, which ultimately led to disaster.This is the fascinating history of one of the biggest financial institutions of our times - and a thrilling expose of the wider financial services sector - which promises to give readers a shocking and brutally honest look into a previously-unknown world of greed, lies and unrelenting human ambition.---"A riveting autopsy of how one of banking's titans gradually, then suddenly, crumbled under the weight of its own misdeeds" - Bradley Hope,and New York Timesand bestselling author ofand Billion Dollar Whaleand andand Blood and Oil"This financial thriller of a book offers a tantalising glimpse into the rot at the heart of one of the world's most powerful banks"and - Parmy Olson, bestselling author ofand We Are Anonymousand andand Supremacy"We're used by now to bankers behaving badly, but Duncan Mavin takes it to another shocking, anger-inducing level. Credit Suisse stood for propriety, but he shows this to be a total fabrication"and - Chris Blackhurst, former editor ofand The Independentand and bestselling author ofand Too Big to Jail"A gripping story of power, greed and panic, and a humbling reminder of the enormous cost of capitalism going awry"and - Josie Cox, author ofand Women, Money and Power