When the Titanic set sail from Southampton on April 10, 1912, bound for New York, it was called “unsinkable.” This was before that chance encounter in the North Atlantic with a large iceberg. You know how that movie ended. Many people died, of course, ...

What shall we make of the surprise pronouncement in President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address that a belated investigation has been launched into the role of fraud in the financial crisis? This much is clear: Despite rampant illegalities, bank fraud and countless ...

In 1995, derivatives broker Nick Leeson of Barings Bank engaged in “unauthorized” speculative trading. The massive losses — £27 million — led to the collapse of Barings, the oldest investment house in Britain. In 1996, another rogue, Sumitomo Bank copper trader Yasuo Hamanaka, lost ...