August 2021 Breakfast Meeting | Andy Fastow, Former CFO of Enron

Andy Fastow was the Chief Financial Officer of Enron Corp. from 1998 through 2001.  In 2001, Enron filed for bankruptcy protection.  As a result of the bankruptcy, $40 billion of shareholder wealth and retirement savings was destroyed, thousands of people lost their jobs, and many businesses and institutions in Houston and elsewhere were adversely affected.  In 2004, Mr. Fastow pled guilty to two counts of securities fraud, and was sentenced to six years in federal prison. 

Mr. Fastow is the only Enron executive that has taken full responsibility for his actions, and he has repeatedly and publicly expressed remorse. In addition to serving his prison sentence, Mr. Fastow forfeited far more money than he ever earned at Enron.  He is credited with being the individual most responsible for helping to recover $6 billion for Enron shareholders. 

 Andy will talk about business ethics, how the ambiguity and complexity of laws and regulations breeds opportunity for problematic decisions, and how technology can be used to potentially illuminate such opportunities.