Culo quadrato: the Italian expression for someone who sits in a chair working so long that he or she gets a “square butt.” It’s the nickname that some of my friends call me because of this book, which took many years to complete. While working at J. P. Morgan and fulfilling my duties as a US Navy reservist, I wrote in the morning, late at night, on weekends, and during the holidays (sorry, Mom!)—on planes, trains, automobiles, and even a submarine base. Without a doubt, it’s the most intellectually demanding project of which I’ve ever been a part, and also the most rewarding.
Because of the book’s breadth, I had to get up to speed on many different disciplines. I relied on many experts for each chapter. I’m grateful to those who read the manuscript, spotted mistakes, and helped me get (most of) it right:
Chapter 1: Rachel Gittman and Lindsey Carr, both PhD candidates at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC); Leandro Vaca, Galapagos Science Center lab and field coordinator; Stephen Walsh, professor of geography at UNC and codirector of the Galapagos Science Center; Carlos Valle, professor of evolutionary biology at the Galapagos Science Center; Haim Ofek, professor of economics at the State University of New York at Binghamton.
Chapter 2: Kenway Louie, research assistant professor, Center for Neural Science at New York University (NYU); Gijs Brouwer, postdoctoral fellow and research scientist in neuroscience at NYU; Brian Knutson, associate professor of psychology and neuroscience at Stanford University; Camelia Kuhnen, associate professor of finance at the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School; Dilip Soman, professor of marketing at Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto; Kevin Bynum, BlackRock; Tim Kubarych, Harding Loevner.
Chapter 3: Randall Wray, professor of economics at the University of Missouri–Kansas City; John Sherry, professor of anthropology at the University of Notre Dame; Steven Garfinkle, professor of history at Western Washington University; Sergei Kan, professor of anthropology and Native American studies at Dartmouth College; Dan Chamby, BlackRock; and Shayne Ebudo, formerly an executive director at J. P. Morgan.
Chapter 4: Ute Wartenberg Kagan, executive director of American Numismatic Society; Steven Garfinkle; David Sear, formerly at B. A. Seaby and author of Roman Coins and Their Values; Wayne G. Sayles, author of Ancient Coin Collecting; Randall Wray; Lawrence Stack and Harvey Stack, Stack’s Bowers Gallery.
Chapter 5: Benn Steil, director of international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations; Farley Grubb, professor of economics at the University of Delaware; Justin Leverenz, Oppenheimer; Steve Mariotti, NFTE; Nicolas Rodriguez-Brizuela, Artisan Partners; Nirat Lertchitvikul, Stack’s Bowers Gallery in Hong Kong; Harvey Stack; Lawrence Stack; Chirag Garg; Shayne Ebudo; Kevin Bynum.
Chapter 6: Balaji Srinivasan, Andreessen Horowitz; Tom Trentman, Sands Capital; Suchit Das, former senior product manager at PayPal; Tien-tsin Huan, J. P. Morgan; Charles Allen, BitcoinShop; Michal Handerhan, BitcoinShop; Moshe Cohen, Columbia University.
Chapter 7: Reverend Steven Paulikas; Monzer Kahf, scholar of Islamic finance; Paul Courtright, professor of religion at Emory University; Susannah Heschel, professor of Jewish studies at Dartmouth College; Larry Kahaner; Umar Moghuls; Nicolas Rodriguez-Brizuela; Charles Boxenbaum.
Chapter 8: Howard Daniel, Quoc Hoang Nguyen, Ronachai Krisadaolarn, Willie Villareal, Percival “Boyet” Manuel, Kavan Ratnatunga, Harvey Stack, Lawrence Stack. As well as Ravi Shankar Sharma, secretary of Numismatics Society of Calcutta; and H. S. Saggu, treasurer of the Numismatics Society of Calcutta; Morena Ramos, PNAS; Ed Nocom, PNAS; Mr. Thieu in Hanoi; D. Wayne Johnson; Wayne Homren, editor of the E-Sylum.
I’m thankful for the contributions of these smart folks: Jon Anderson, Arjun Dev Arora, Sundeep Ahuja, John Baxter, Danielle Bernstein, Frank Bisignano, Vicki Black, Michael Bossidy, Josh Bower, Katie Clark, Bishawjit Das, Mike Derham, Mitul Desai, Jasmin Eichler, Corine Farhat, Hussein Fazal, David Gardner, Jono Gasparro, Sophie Geng, Henedina Somoza Gonzales, Adam Jackson, Moushumi Khan, Sarah Labowitz, Dennis Lockhart, Frederick Mbari, Lisa Miller, Seema Mody, Maroof Mohsin, Lamiya Morshed, Lakshay Nirula, Jared O’Connell, Anne Phyfe Palmer, Chirayu Patel, Sufi Mostafizur Rahman, Benjamin Richter, Jafar Rizvi, Sorin Roibu, Patrick Scholtes, Geoff Schwarten, Manuel Sevillano, Katherine Snedeker, Vivek Sodera, Adam Starr, Lev Sviridov, Paul Volcker, Michael Welch, David Wertime, Brian Westover, John Williams, Andreas Xenachis, Andrew Young, Muhammad Yunus, and everyone who provided testimonials for the book and helped with obtaining pictures. I am especially thankful for Archduke Julian Boxenbaum, who was always available to discuss the book and how to improve it. Thank you to Ariana Pieper, dear friend and editor, who has helped me write for years; you read early drafts, researched diligently, and provided invaluable edits. I appreciate your brilliance and support.
I’m thankful to J. P. Morgan for being a wonderful place at which to learn about money and capital markets, and to my managers and colleagues, who are some of the smartest and most diligent people I’ve ever known. I’m also grateful to the New York Public Library, an incredible resource, as well as their research librarians. Thank you, Professor Gretchen Young, a magnificent friend and my masterful editor at Hachette. You helped conceive of this book and shepherded it to success. Along the way you provided wise counsel, encouraged me, and made this text infinitely better. Everyone needs a Gretchen in their life. Thank you to the entire team at Hachette and Grand Central Publishing, including Jamie Raab, Rick Wolff, Allyson Rudolph, Jamie Snider, Marlene Plasencia, Caitlin Mulrooney-Lyski, and Thomas Pitoniak. My agent, Gillian MacKenzie, was remarkable in shaping the direction of the manuscript and providing counsel.
My loving family sustained me during this project: Raghbir, Surishtha, and Kashi. When I would tire of writing, I would walk circles around Madison Square Park, chatting with my mother, who offered sage advice.
My mentor, Douglas Brinkley, is splendid, available at late hours to talk shop and help me hone this craft. He and his wife, Anne, have been incredibly generous to me over the years. I’m proud to be a lifelong student and disciple of his. And to you, the reader, for joining me on this journey.