HEALDSBURG, Calif., April 25 (UPI) -- Paul Erdman, whose experience in the collapse of a Swiss bank led to writing novels of financial intrigue, has died in Healdsburg, Calif., at the age of 74.
Erdman, who died Monday of cancer, was credited for popularizing financial fiction, The New York Times said Wednesday. His novels featured exotic settings, mysterious cartels and oodles of cash.
Erdman worked as an economist in Europe when, in 1965, he established a private bank in Switzerland. In 1970, the bank collapsed because of unauthorized speculation in cocoa and silver futures, with losses reportedly in the tens of millions of dollars. As bank president, Erdman was sent to a Swiss jail to await charges.
Having an Olivetti typewriter, he started writing a nonfiction book about economics but began fictionalizing it because he lacked research resources. A fellow inmate told Erdman the secrets of safe-cracking using common instruments -- and "The Billion Dollar Sure Thing" was born, the Times said.
Eventually freed, Erdman returned to the United States. He was tried and convicted in absentia in Switzerland.
Among his better-known novels are "The Crash of '79" and "The Panic of '89." Erdman also wrote nonfiction.
