King of Capital: The Remarkable Rise, Fall, and Rise Again of Steve Schwarzman and Blackstone

Written by David Carey and John E. Morris

Narrated by George K. Wilson

The story of Steve Schwarzman, Blackstone, and a financial revolution, King of Capital is the greatest untold success story on Wall Street.



In King of Capital, David Carey and John Morris show how Blackstone (and other private equity firms) transformed themselves from gamblers, hostile-takeover artists, and "barbarians at the gate" into disciplined, risk-conscious investors while the financial establishment—banks and investment bankers such as Citigroup, Bear Stearns, Lehman, UBS, Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley—were recklessly assuming risks, leveraging up to astronomical levels and driving the economy to the brink of disaster. Now, not only have Blackstone and a small coterie of competitors wrested control of corporations around the globe, but they have emerged as a major force on Wall Street, challenging the likes of Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley for dominance.



Insightful and hard-hitting, filled with never-before-revealed details about the workings of a heretofore secretive company that was the personal fiefdom of Schwarzman and Peter Peterson, King of Capital shows how Blackstone and private equity will drive the economy and provide a model for how financing will work in the years to come.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Dec 2, 2010
• ISBN: 9781452670003

Reviews for King of Capital

[Victor Reynoso · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

So I came in believing this book to be like the Wolf of Wallstreet but, it was quite better. I hadn't known about buyout funds or how large the leverage had been back during the 20th century. Its quite a enjoyable audiobook

[eversuhoshin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great book about private equity- It is a great book to learn how PE works and where can things go wrong. PE has smart people but they often overestimate the efficiency gains and the do not predict cycles well, buying near the top. Also, the book does good job at examining PEs. They are not wonder money making machines but they are not fraud either. PEs do create value or else they won't exist. Overall, very good book to learn about PE.

[ericcostello-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A history of the Blackstone LBO/merchant banking firm. I found this to be an interesting counterpart to the much earlier "Merchants of Debt" (a history of KKR, a rival firm), in that it brings the story up to date, including various twists, like the full fallout of the RJR Nabisco buyout, and the 2008 crash. Fairly even-handed, I think, to the point that there's a defence of the infamous Safeway LBO in one of the later chapters of the book. Definitely worth reading if you are interested in LBOs. Curiously, no photographs.

[willszal-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I went into this book thinking it would be about Blackstone [as the title might suggest]. It's actually about the past thirty years of private equity, including some lengthy sections on the progenitors of the industry, KKR.

It's an interesting mix of personal stories, industry trends, and a history of specific deals and what patterns can be learned from them. It really gives a lot of insight into how LBOs [Leveraged Buyouts] work, from looking at their early ties with junk-bond funding, to the massive rounds they've raised in recent years.

Ultimately, this is the kind of book I read for fun and entertainment, and in that regard, it delivered.

It should be taken with a grain of salt, as the authors think that LBOs are good thing—a perspective on which most people would take issue. If you are looking for a larger analysis of the impacts of LBOs and leverage in general on the global economy, this is definitely not your book, as it is focused solely on the heart of the LBO industry.