How to Smell a Rat: The Five Signs of Financial Fraud

As Ken Fisher watched the news coverage of Bernard Madoff’s unraveling Ponzi scheme, he was struck by what the media seemed to always miss when reporting on such scams.  Fisher Investments’ CEO Ken Fisher, who’s been managing money for individuals and institutions for over 30 years, has identified key traits shared by perpetrators of virtually every major financial fraud through history—from Charles Ponzi to Bernard Madoff.  Had the embezzled clients known the traits and how to look for them, they could have avoided falling victim to Madoff and any similar con artist. Ken Fisher, a New York Times bestselling author and writer of one of Forbes’ longest-running columns, “Portfolio Strategy,” knew then there was a book to be written – a book he would write -- to help investors protect themselves from financial predators.

Some financial advisers start with the intention to embezzle. Others evolve to it—as Madoff claims. Either way, it’s structurally the same.  In How to Smell a Rat: Five Signs of Financial Fraud (Wiley; August 2009; $24.95; Hardcover), trusted financial expert Ken Fisher provides readers with an insider’s view on how to spot potential financial disasters before committing money to a scam. 

The book takes an engaging look at both recent and historic examples of fraudsters, how they operated, and how they could have been easily avoided. Ken Fisher then shows readers quick, identifiable features of potential financial frauds and arms readers with questions to ask when assessing money managers.

How to Smell a Rat can enable readers to be better prepared to identify and avoid financial scams that could instantly destroy the wealth they’ve worked so hard to build.