Bernard Ebbers Quotes

Behind a mask of apparent openness and accountability to which once-trusted accountancy firms and business analysts were willing collaborators, a raft of corrupt practices has undermined the livelihoods and expectations of millions.

… the use of office for direct or indirect personal monetary gain

I don't know of anything illegal or even unethical that Bert Lance has ever done.

I am calling Shaktikanta Das as a corrupt person. I am surprised that the man I got removed from the Finance Ministry for corruption was brought in as governor.

I don't think anyone would argue with the notion that there have been serious abuses on Wall Street.

I spoke bluntly about what I had seen in a little over a year as United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. To the apparent surprise of many in the room, I observed publicly that insider trading appeared to be rampant.

But look, you did not have to be well versed in politics to know that some stupid things were going on. It is the counsel's job to stop them, and instead the coverup was created.

I never made up any investor. I never made up Paul Abrams.

Before Enron, I think people were a bit more naive about the way things worked, and I think Enron pulled the curtain back on unsavoury practices that turned out to be a lot more widespread.

Because the sad fact is that the Enron Corporation and others manipulated with unfortunately great effect the energy market in the West Coast starting in 2000.

Research suggests that investment bankers are more prone to commit fraud when they feel the competitor at their heels.

Over the years, many in the public have become numb to news of financial corruption, partly because too many of these stories involve banker-on-banker crime.

And, believe me; they will do everything to cover this up.

When Enron collapsed, through court processes, thousands and thousands of emails came out that were internal, and it provided a window into how the whole company was managed. It was all the little decisions that supported the flagrant violations.

I agree that there are some bad apples on Wall Street. I spent about ten years exposing corporate and financial fraud for 'Barron's' magazine and I found a lot to write about.

The facts are the vice president's company that he was CEO of, that did business with sworn enemies of the United States, paid millions of dollars in fines for providing false financial information, it's under investigation for bribing foreign officials.

Investors are sometimes too busy looking for profits to notice where the truth ends and the deception begins.

I take full responsibility for what happened at Enron. But saying that, I know in my mind that I did nothing criminal.

People are treating the Stewart case as seriously as Enron when it's really over trivia.

I think that the failures of Enron and WorldCom and other companies are partially failures of investors to recognize companies that are selling for a thousand times nothing, but chances are they may be worth only that.

I'm very interested in how corruption works - and it's not necessarily the way one might expect.

We shouldn’t be lending money to corrupt officials. We should be guarded in our generosity.

The savings and loan scandals grew in the dark basements of official government secrecy.

Was there ever such a bare-faced corruption in any country before?

The hanky-panky in public service that really matters is about money and not sex.