Walter Rostow and Citibank

Author: Philip L. Zeigler
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-04-01
Features: How Walter Rostow, the CEO of Citibank, embarked on rebuilding his institution and even the banking and financial industries of the United States and the world? This book tells you about his wisdom, setbacks, and courage, taking you into the heart of the financial world. It depicts how a visionary person climbed the throne of the colossal yet lifeless Citizens Bank (later renamed Citibank), and how he set about rebuilding his institution and the banking and financial industries of the United States and the world. He advocated the market economy, challenging the White House and Congress, the Federal Reserve, and other top financial minds. There were both wins and losses. He succeeded in reforming consumer banking, the use of bank credit cards, and intercontinental banking, as well as abolishing parts of the existing financial system. However, he also became a target of criticism for leading the issuance of billions of dollars in loans to the third world, drawing widespread condemnation. During the writing of this book, the author Philip L. Zeigler interviewed many prominent figures of the time, including former President Gerald Ford, former Secretary of State George Shultz and Henry Kissinger, former Secretary of the Treasury (Con), Simon and Reagan, former Chair of the Federal Reserve William Miller and Paul Volcker, and Rostow himself. This book is not only an engaging biography but also a brilliant historical record of the rise and fall of the American financial hegemony during Rostow's era.