How Wall Street’s Billionaires Became Untouchable - William D. Cohan
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What is the premise of “Money to Burn” and why is the title significant?
We've created this class, a hubristic class of people. They're able to have anything they want in the world and will forever. I mean they've created generational wealth. They are untouchable in that regard. It seems that he was the gold rules. There probably needs to be a more accountability generally. This is undermining our society when we create the class of oligarchs who seem to have no carburetor on their behavior or on their mouths. Or any accountability for their actions. And I think that's debilitating to our society. And unfortunately, it's starting at the top of our society to
Welcome to Open Book. I am your host, Anthony Scaramucci. Joining us is a dear friend, Bill Cohen. Bill, what a book this is. Okay, I'm gonna make the argument here that this is your best book, and I've read every one of your books, but the title of the book is Money to Burn, The Unvarnished Truth about Leon Black, Apollo. And the rise of a new Wall Street. So uh one of your reviewers said it was like five different books in one, but the reason I love the book, and I appreciate you give me an advanced copy, which I read over the summer, is This is uh unusual group of people. I mean this this is and these are contemporaries of you yours and mine and we know these people and so the research that you did on these people I think was uh legendary but let's start with the title.
Why money to burn? What what what are you what what is the point that you're trying to make with that title?
Well, first Anthony, thank you for having me. Uh it's always great to see you. You know, you yourself have a new book coming out, which I wish you all the best with. Uh and I can't wait to uh I've read most of it and I can't wait to see how well it does. Uh well credit first to my wife, uh your former uh uh teacher's daughter. Or librarian's daughter out where you all grew up.
How what a what a kismet sort of story. So I'm going to interrupt you for a second. So uh the the former librarian uh of the Port Washington Middle School is your wife's mom, Mrs. Futter. And right, and I'm gonna tell this is a tale out of school, but it'll just it'll you'll you'll I think everyone will appreciate this. I had a great relationship with her, and she used to save for me the sports. illustrated bathing suit editions uh in the archive. How how much do you love that? I mean, how much do you love that? How much do you love? This is a legendary how much do you love a 13-year-old Anthony Scaramucci going into the middle school library and saying, Mrs. Futter, do you have my stash? She says, yes, Anthony, and I would I would go back into that little study cubicle.
And I love that story. And I can
totally believe it. I I I feel like it's completely accurate. I can see you with your ghost motorcycle jacket on going back in the cubby hole. Going back in the coming home.
That's how we grew up. But she was she was awesome. You know, and by the way, uh, and she and you have a uh I think your uh your sister in law was the president of Barnard there for a while, right? And she went out of the Museum of Natural History, I believe, as well, right? That's correct. That's true. So she knows she knew she knew how to raise people, that's for sure. All right, but go ahead, Bill. All right, so my my my So my my
my well my my wife uh who's very good at coming up with these titles because she uh has been in the publishing. She's the uh runs two publishing uh companies uh as part of McMillan and has for a long time. Uh so we were sort of struggling. I was sort of you know, something to do with Apollo, Apollo rising, you know, the whole Greek God angle of this and then she just came up with that. And I think it it really summarizes sort of what's going on here. I mean these and again it you alluded to this. I mean we all s started, you know, with these people in the private equity business, you know, on Wall Street i in the in the mid to late eighties. And, you know, it this could have been us. I mean if we had been fortunate enough to go in the private equity
direction or were, you know, uh could have had the guts to start a private equity firm ourselves.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What is the premise of “Money to Burn” and why is the title significant?
0:00–4:58
2
How did Leon Black’s family tragedy shape his drive to build Apollo?
4:58–11:14
3
What were the key moments in the formation and early growth of Apollo?
11:14–17:15
4
How did the partnership between Leon Black, Josh Harris, and Mark Rowan evolve and fracture?
17:15–23:04
5
What role did Jeffrey Epstein play in Leon Black’s tax‑and‑estate strategy?
23:04–28:27
6
How did Apollo’s shift to private credit create a new source of systemic risk?
28:27–35:04
7
Why does the book describe the new Wall Street elite as a “hubristic class”?
35:04–37:53
Speakers
1 identifiedMore from Open Book with Anthony Scaramucci
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