Following such high-profile corporate scandals as Enron and WorldCom in the United States, European business executives smugly proclaimed that the same could not happen on their side of the Atlantic as Europe does not share America's laissez-faire capitalism. Unfortunately, however, they were proved wrong quickly when Parmalat, a jewel of Italian capitalism, collapsed spectacularly as a result of massive accounting frauds.
1. How was it possible for Parmalat managers to "cook the books" and hide it for so long?
2. Investigate and discuss the role that international banks and auditors might have played in Parmalat's collapse.
3. Study and discuss Italy's corporate governance regime and its role in the failure of Parmalat.