Publishers Weekly
Enron, Lehman Brothers, Bernie Madoff—it’s clear that corruption and venality are de rigueur at the highest ranks of the financial services industry. Financial journalist Raghavan knows this as well as anyone, making her exhaustive account of the self-destruction of Raj Rajaratnam and Rajat Gupta all the more confusing. Though the narrative is fast-paced, the point of the book is uncertain. The utter ubiquity of Gupta’s misbehavior at the Galleon Group, spectacularly expensive to the company as it was, does not make his story particularly remarkable. Ostensibly about the integration of Indian immigrants into the upper echelons of American society, the book barely mentions that topic, and the nationality of Rajaratnam (Sri Lankan, not Indian), Gupta, and their associates seems an extraneous detail. By focusing on the unsurprising chummy backscratching, avaricious dealing, and boundless sense of entitlement in this world, Raghavan barrels past promising side roads. For example, the fact that “a previous insider trading accusation into Rajaratnam… was squashed because a criminal probe into his possible involvement with a Tamil insurgent group had taken precedence” is treated as an unfortunate distraction. Agent: Shawn Coyne, Genre Management. (June)
From the Publisher
"Thanks to author Anita Raghavan's intrepid reporting, THE BILLIONAIRE'S APPRENTICE combines the drama of the federal government unraveling an insider trading ring with the historical sweep of immigrants rising from nothing to the corridors of corporate power."
—Bethany McLean, co-author of the bestsellers The Smartest Guys In the Room and All the Devils Are Here
"Anita Raghavan's journalistic and writing skill comes through on every page of THE BILLIONAIRE'S APPRENTICE. I couldn't put it down; it's a true story that reads like a thriller."—William D. Cohan, bestselling author of The Last Tycoons, House of Cards, and Money and Power
"THE BILLIONAIRE'S APPRENTICE is that rare work of nonfiction that follows an ambitious hero as he climbs to the pinnacle of power inside the top boardrooms of corporate America, gets seduced, and falls in a spectacular insider trading scandal. This is a modern-day Greek tragedy that plays out among the upper echelons of Wall Street, Silicon Valley, and the global business elite. Doggedly reported and utterly compelling."—Bryan Burrough, bestselling author of Barbarians at the Gate and The Big Rich
"Raghavan excels with her account . . . She provides an insightful account of South Asian immigration to the U.S. since the 1960s and shows how relations established in India's elite education system provided some of the ties that bound the conspirators together."—Kirkus
"Through meticulous research, copious history, vivid characters, and entertaining prose, Raghavan weaves together many different worlds, eras, and personality types to deliver a compelling view of the multi-cultural politics of today's Wall Street."—Huffington Post
"Riveting."—Bloomberg
"The best form of journalism, an early draft of history."—The New York Times Book Review
"Anita Raghavan's THE BILLIONAIRE'S APPRENTICE [is] a riveting account of the takedown of Raj Rajaratnam...[Ms. Raghavan] has written a briskly paced account full of fascinating detail...this book deserves to be on the shelf of anyone lusting after a little Wall Street schadenfreude this summer."
—Wall Street Journal
"[a] deeply researched, fascinating and well-written book."
—Financial Times
"In THE BILLIONAIRE'S APPRENTICE Raghavan provides readers with the best account yet of Rajaratnam and his Indian American 'mafia' - who they were, what they did and how they did it."—Washington Post
The New York Times Book Review - Frank Partnoy
…the guts of [The Billionaire's Apprentice] are the best form of journalism, an early draft of history…the overall picture of Wall Street that emerges is more diverse and complex than the prevailing image of a decade ago.
Kirkus Reviews
Financial journalist Raghavan debuts with this account of the international web of insider trading at Raj Rajaratnam's Galleon hedge fund. The author traces the precedent-setting prosecution and May 2011 conviction of Rajaratnam, whose 11-year jail term is the longest awarded in an insider trading case to date, from its unlikely beginnings in an investigation of his younger brother's hedge fund. For the first time, wiretaps were used to secure convictions in such a case, and Raghavan excels with her account of how the targets for taps were sifted out of more than 4 million pages of documentation over the three-year investigation. The process she reports at both the SEC and the U.S. Attorney's office becomes compelling as the pieces of the case are identified and potential witnesses recruited. Raghavan compiled more than 200 interviews and traveled extensively in her quest to assemble the narrative. She provides an insightful account of South Asian immigration to the U.S. since the 1960s and shows how relations established in India's elite education system provided some of the ties that bound the conspirators together. Rajaratnam and his accomplices--mainly Rajat Gupta, a former head of the McKinsey consulting company and board member at Goldman Sachs--were also highflying associates of top political and corporate circles in both India and the U.S. Gupta, in particular, frequented quarters where significant decisions were made about outsourcing U.S. economic activity. Rajaratnam's accomplices at Intel and Advanced Micro Devices provided the information necessary to build his reputation as an expert in technology and produce spectacular financial gains. Compelling in its specificity and intriguing in its portrayal of leading financial institutions and their malfeasance.
