00:00 The rise and fall of Enron, one of the greatest swindles in corporate American history, is discussed in this podcast episode.

05:48 The rise and fall of Enron is discussed, including the deregulation of the 80s, the greed of those in power, and the creation of the gas bank by Jeffrey Skilling.

11:29 Enron's management encouraged competition and aggressive behavior among employees, with a focus on making money for the company at any cost, leading to unethical practices and the manipulation of debts and losses.

17:13 Enron manipulated the electrical market in California by creating artificial scarcity and inflating prices, resulting in numerous blackouts and crippling the state.

22:54 Enron manipulated the energy market in California, causing blackouts and inflating prices, while also orchestrating a coup to replace Governor Gray Davis with Arnold Schwarzenegger, all in the name of making money.

28:23 Enron's main focus became keeping their stock price high, even if it meant hiding debt and manipulating their revenues through special purpose entities.

34:02 Enron used mark-to-market accounting to inflate their revenues by including anticipated future earnings from deals that hadn't made any money yet, and they would move any debts from these deals to special purpose entities to keep them off their books.

39:38 Enron was able to get away with their fraudulent accounting practices because they were a Wall Street darling, with financial analysts and banks complicit in their actions, and the venerable accounting firm Arthur Andersen signing off on their reports.

45:04 Enron whistleblower Sharon Watkins noticed that Enron's cost of capital was higher than their return on investment, indicating that they were not a profitable company, which contradicted their earnings reports, and she eventually wrote an anonymous letter to Enron CEO Ken Lay expressing her concerns.

51:01 Enron filed for bankruptcy, which was the largest chapter 11 bankruptcy in US history at the time, resulting in the loss of jobs for 20,000 employees and the collapse of the company's stock.

56:44 Enron's CFO, Andrew Fastow, pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and securities fraud and served five years in prison, while CEO Jeffrey Skilling was convicted of 19 counts and served 12 years, and CEO Ken Lay died of a heart attack before being sentenced; Enron's collapse led to the enactment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and resulted in billions of dollars in settlements from various banks and Arthur Andersen.

01:02:21 Enron's story is one that lacks redemption, explanation, or apology, and there is no one out there defending the company's actions.