Ivan Frederick Boesky, a former Wall Street financier, who was famously implicated in one of the biggest insider trading scandals of the 1980s, died on November 28, 2021, at the age of 87.
Boesky was known for his prominent role in the world of arbitrage but eventually pleaded guilty to insider trading in 1987, resulting in a $100 million fine and a three-year prison sentence. His downfall sent shockwaves through Wall Street and raised public awareness about the greed and corruption in the financial sector at the time.
Notably, Boesky served as a sort of inspiration for the character Gordon Gekko in Oliver Stone’s 1987 film “Wall Street”. Gekko, played by Michael Douglas, delivered the famous line, “Greed, for lack of a better word, is good,” a sentiment that reflected a common criticism of the culture of Wall Street during the decade.
While Boesky’s activities were illegal and eventually led to his fall from grace, they played a significant role in shaping public perception about the financial industry and continue to serve as notable examples of the potential for corruption within finance.
