View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. In 2008, AIG had grown into one of the world’s largest financial companies, with more than how much worth of assets on its books?

2. According to the author in Chapter 6, Scott Friedheim was an executive in whose mold?

3. What were the quarterly losses that were announced at Lehman Brothers on June 9, 2008?

4. In 2008, AIG had grown into one of the world’s largest financial companies, with a market value of just under how much?

5. Bob Willumstad was a third-generation son of immigrants from where?

Short Essay Questions

1. What did Jamie Dimon inform his executive staff after attending the meeting described in the Prologue?

2. Who did Bob Willumstad replace as CEO of AIG? How does the author describe Hank Greenberg’s thoughts on this transition in Chapter 8?

3. What decisions came out of the meeting described in Chapter 9?

4. What was Hank Paulson’s first concern regarding the possibility of failure of Lehman Brothers, according to the author in Chapter 4?

5. When was AIG’s Financial Products department developed, according to the author in Chapter 8? How successful was this department?

6. To whom did John Thain turn for help with Merrill Lynch’s situation in Chapter 7? What response did he receive?

7. What executive meeting does the author describe in the opening of Chapter 9? Where did the meeting take place?

8. How was Lehman Brothers impacted by the news of Bear Stearns’ collapse, according to the author in Chapter 1? What actions did the company take?

9. What advice did Skip McGee give to Dick Fuld in Chapter 6? How did Fuld respond?

10. What suggestion did Hank Paulson make to Dick Fuld regarding Lehman Brothers’ holdings in Chapter 2? How did Fuld respond?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Henry Paulson’s plea to Congress in order to save Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. What were the results of this plea? How did the public respond to the bailouts? What did the bailouts entail?

Essay Topic 2

Describe and discuss Susanne Craig’s article from the Wall Street Journal on June 4, 2008. What implications do you see in the article? Why did its publication enrage Dick Fuld? How did the article influence the future of Lehman Brothers’ stockholdings?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the biography and career of John Thain and the history of Merrill Lynch. How did Merrill Lynch’s status as a “brokerage firm” differ from the statuses of banks? When was the company established? What was its standing in 2008 as the financial world anticipated the downfall of Lehman Brothers?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 932 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample