Reviews for Transformation of Wall Street: A History of the Securities and Exchange Commission and Moder...

The average rating for Transformation of Wall Street: A History of the Securities and Exchange Commission and Moder... based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2016-12-18 00:00:00 Margarita Gratacos Prats This book is a mess. It's a sprawling, disjointed, often incomprehensible history of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Unfortunately, it remains the only complete history of that regulatory behemoth, so I slogged through it. Luckily there are a few diamonds in the rough. The chapters on the origins of the SEC in the New Deal years are the best. The in-depth analysis of the SEC's decade-long battle to implement the the Public Holding Companies Act of 1935, which required J.P. Morgan-backed utilities to break themselves up and which led to extended negotiations for voluntary "divestiture," are intriguing. The descriptions of Chairman William Douglas's 1938 battle with New York Stock Exchange President William McChesney Martin to open up that exchange to commission agents, take away power from "floor traders" on its Governing Committee, and corral "specialist" insider trading, leading to a temporary SEC victory, are well told. The later chapters include valuable descriptions of Chairman William Cary's attempt to revitalize the agency with insider trading rulings such as "Cady Roberts" and "Gulf Sulpher" in the 1960s, and the SEC's long and half-hearted attempt to break up fixed commission charges at the stock exchange and create price competition (limited by its own, old Rule 22(d)) for mutual funds. There's also surprises like Chairman William Casey's (later head of the CIA) push to create an independent Financial Accounting Standards Board in 1973, after the old accounting standards group fell apart over debates on merger accounting and generally nebulous rules. The author, Joel Seligman, was a former "Nader's Raider," and is now a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis. His biases are almost always for more regulation and almost always for more legal restrictions on stock trading and company governance. The biggest problem with the book, however, is the lack of a strong editorial hand, that would have limited the unnecessary bloviating and organized the stories, laws, and regulations into something more readable. It's unlikely though that another author is going to attempt such a monumental and comprehensive study, which will make this, for better or worse, the handiest reference for years to come.

Review # 2 was written on 2015-01-02 00:00:00 Judson Siegel Awesome text, awesome scope. Fascinating view into Wall Street politics, embattled reformers, historical corruption (in investment banking, accounting, law) and fabulous view of the difficulties of admiristrative law. A truly phenomenal book. Good job Mr. Seligman. The SEC was a crown jewel of the New Deal and remains one of the most accomplished federal agencies.