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The Talon Files

The Talon Files

Written by: K. R. Talon
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Every episode of The Talon Files starts with fiction. Then comes the real story.

Financial thriller author K. R. Talon writes novellas built on the real mechanics of market fraud, rogue trading, and the specific ways institutions fail — and cover it up. This podcast is where the research behind the fiction becomes the show.

For each book in the series, one episode. The real scandal that inspired it. The numbers that couldn't be hidden. Where the fiction compressed the truth, and where the truth was stranger than anything invented.

From the collapse of Barings Bank to the Archegos implosion. From €49 billion hidden inside a compliance desk to the short attacks that kill companies whose drugs actually work. The stories are fiction. The numbers are real.


A note on production: The Talon Files uses an AI voice avatar. The scripts, research, and every word in these episodes are written by K. R. Talon. The voice delivering them is synthesized — a deliberate choice made to prioritize writing quality over studio production. This show exists to support readers, expand the world of the books, and bring these financial stories to a wider audience.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

© 2026 K. R. Talon Art Economics Personal Finance True Crime
Episodes
  • Account 88888: The Number That Broke a 232-Year-Old Bank

    Account 88888: The Number That Broke a 232-Year-Old Bank
    May 17 2026

    Every number in this episode is from the historical record. The fiction is in the name, the marriage, and the five o'clock morning.

    The Novella: The Error Account — The Rogue Traders Series, Book 1 Available on Amazon Kindle and in paperback: [link]

    The Real Case: The Collapse of Barings Bank, 1995

    • Final losses: £827 million
    • Barings capital at time of collapse: ~£540 million
    • Sale price to ING: £1
    • Sentence: 6.5 years (served 4)

    Key structural failure: Segregation of duties — the practice of separating trade execution from trade settlement — was not maintained at Barings' Singapore operation. One person controlled both functions. This is the gap the account lived in.

    Further reading:

    • Rogue Trader by Nick Leeson (memoir, 1996)
    • Barings Collapse — Bank of England report, 1995
    • The Collapse of Barings by Stephen Fay (1996)

    Join the inner circle for bonus chapters, research notes, and early access: https://www.krtalon.com/



    Join the inner circle — it's free.

    Get early access to new chapters, the research behind the fiction, and first notice on everything K. R. Talon publishes next.

    → www.krtalon.com

    The Talon Files is the companion podcast to the financial thriller series by K. R. Talon — novellas built on real market scandals, rogue traders, and the numbers institutions tried to hide. Each episode unpacks the true events behind one book: what actually happened, what the fiction changed, and what the market learned — or didn't.

    Every story is fiction. Every number is real.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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    26 mins
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