The 2008 financial crisis was among the worst in history, yet nevertheless offers invaluable lessons. Recorded as the third largest bankruptcy in history, it caused Iceland to experience an instant collapse. Iceland defied the rules of finance; no bailout was attempted, capital movements were restricted, bankers jailed, and creditors fought. Amazingly, although Iceland was hit hardest, it recovered fastest. In The Combat Zone of Finance is an insider's account told through anecdotes, dialogues and personal stories. The author, Svein Harald Øygard, was offered the job of Central Bank Governor of Iceland just as the crisis struck. He saw how institutions and leaders behaved from inside the system in its deepest crisis. Some made billions; others got burned. Their behaviour, strengths and weaknesses were revealed as in no other country. Øygard analyses these events in the context of financial risks facing the world in 2020; knowledge of which is becoming increasingly relevant. AUTHOR: Svein Harald Øygard was appointed interim Central Bank Governor of Iceland in the midst of the country's deepest crisis. He became the first non-national to head an independent Central Bank. Previously, he was Deputy Minister of Finance for Norway and he has worked at McKinsey & Company as a corporate strategist for 22 years. SELLING POINTS: . An incredible inside story of a country that crashed and recovered from the financial crisis . Iceland became a symbol of the extremes of the 2008 financial crisis ? an honest insider's account of what happened . Written by the then Central Bank Governor of Iceland, who was tasked with rescuing the country . In the same vein as Michael Lewis' Flash boys and The Blind Side, this is a dramatic narrative of our economic times . Offers a unique vantage point to observe the forces of global banking, finance and economics
