Lawrence G. McDonald is the founder of The Bear Traps Report, an independent investment research platform focused on global political and systemic risk, actionable trade ideas, and the market signals that matter most to institutional investors.

In late 2006, while serving as Vice President at Lehman Brothers, McDonald led his team into one of the most important trades of the financial crisis: betting against the subprime mortgage market. The trade ultimately generated more than $2 billion in profits for the firm before its collapse. His firsthand experience inside Lehman gave him a rare perspective on risk, leverage, crowding, liquidity, and the hidden fault lines that can build beneath the surface of markets.

McDonald later chronicled those lessons in his international bestseller, A Colossal Failure of Common Sense: The Inside Story of the Collapse of Lehman Brothers, which has been translated into 12 languages and sold more than 700,000 copies. The book is now featured among the CFA Institute’s top 20 books of all time. His most recent bestseller, How to Listen When Markets Speak, expands on the major shifts underway across inflation, energy, commodities, passive investing, policy, and portfolio construction.

As a keynote speaker, McDonald delivers thought-provoking, high-energy presentations that combine market intelligence, real-world crisis experience, risk management lessons, and actionable frameworks for navigating a changing investment landscape. His proprietary 21 Lehman Systemic Risk Indicators are designed to help investors recognize the early warning signs of market stress and avoid the dangerous pitfalls of the post-Lehman financial system.