The Quant saga: What is front-running, and its recent history

In the movie 'Too Big to Fail', William Hurt plays the role of Henry Paulson (an American investment banker turned United States Secretary of the Treasury). At the height of the 2008 global financial crisis, Hurt summarised how the banking system works in two lines: "There is not a bank in the world that has enough money in its vault to pay its depositors. It's all built on trust."

This article was originally published on June 24, 2024.