We brought you news recently of the publication of The Last Tycoons: The Secret History of Lazard Frères, a 742-page sprawler by former Lazard banker William Cohan. The book argued that its recent public offering cheapened the company a bit, and it was skeptical about the tactics employed by chief executive Bruce Wasserstein to "drag the bank, kicking and screaming, into the contemporary age." Now Lazard has chosen to respond: "The Last Tycoons is a substantially inaccurate account written by a junior banker who left Lazard more than 10 years ago. It was not fact-checked with the firm and has nothing to do with the present state of Lazard or its business, which in fact has been highly successful." Success of course can cover a lot of speed bumps, which is what the book is.

For more:
- here's an article in Financial News Online