As negative economic news piles up, financial markets go from bad to worse sending stocks and bonds into a relentless tailspin. A panic ensues. The stock market collapses further and most investors are wiped out. The booming economic expansion turns into a sharp credit contraction and depression. Consumer buying shrivels and business activity plummets.
Mortgage foreclosures are epidemic.
Richie Stenquist, an aggressive speculator, begins to maneuver through the wreckage. In the face of collapsing markets he parlays his small stake into a vast fortune. The worst is yet to come. The dollar crashes, interest rates scream upward, mutual funds postpone redemptions, and liquidity vanishes. Massive derivative defaults capsize banks and hedge funds.