Dirty Money (2018)

Trader's Film Library #76 · Documentary series. An anthology of corporate scandals with one excellent episode about short selling.

Original title: Dirty Money · Type: documentary series (2 seasons, 2018–2020) · Created by: Alex Gibney (creator and producer), various directors · Usefulness for traders: ★★★☆☆

What it's about

A Netflix documentary anthology: each episode is a separate story of business misconduct, made by a different director. The first season includes the Volkswagen emissions scandal, “Drug Short” about the pharmaceutical company Valeant and the investors betting on its fall, an episode on HSBC laundering cartel money, payday loans and Donald Trump's business dealings. The second season brings more stories, including money laundering and abuses against the most vulnerable.

What it has to do with markets

For a trader the key episode is “Drug Short”: it shows how short sellers analyse a company, look for irregularities and what happens to the share price when they come to light. The other episodes are a catalogue of the mechanisms that let companies hide problems for years.

Lessons for traders

• short selling is analytical work, not “betting against” on principle
• rapid revenue growth without a transparent source is a warning sign
• big and well known doesn't mean honest (the halo effect, Atlas of biases #29)

What to watch out for

The series is opinionated and one-sided by design. The episodes vary in quality.

Discussion

The discussion takes place in Hetman Capital Club (in Polish). Join the discussion in the Club →

Navigation

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The description outlines the plot without revealing the ending where possible (true stories have a known outcome). Educational content, not investment advice.