Ro's Recz

Black Edge is about the hedge-fund industry, which many people may have heard of, but likely do not know the specific details. Successful hedge-funds are extremely big, and those who run them can be billionaires. Black Edge mostly talks about one of the biggest hedge-funds of all time, SAC.

Throughout the book, you will learn about the owner of SAC, Steven Cohen. This book reads almost like a mystery or a drama, but it is a true story. I think reading this book will give you a lot of new insights into how the business world, and hedge-funds in particular, really operates.

It is incredible to read (but also a little sad) how the smartest people in the world are constantly pushing the rules a little further. What starts off as an aggressive, but legal plan, can quickly spiral into an undoubtedly illegal action. Also, once people are too far into illegal schemes, they have no choice but to go even further.

This was an interesting book to read from start to finish, and I learned more about hedge funds and why they can make so much money. It was disheartening to see how people in power can protect themselves from getting in serious legal trouble (big fines, but no jail time), while their subordinates have to take the fall for them. While this is a sad reality about the world, it is a good lesson to learn so that it does not happen to you.

Black Edge Recommendation Rating: 3.5

1: Something worth checking out if you have time

2: Something that is a hit for some people, but not a must for everyone

3: Something worth prioritizing if interested

4: Something worth making time to check out

5: An absolute home run, worth going out of your way for