Bad CEO

And How He Got That Way

Conceived at Woodstock to a campus radical and a fleeting father, River Stevens was raised on a commune in Vermont and then plunged into poverty when the project failed. A brilliant student, he is accepted into MIT and then goes to Silicon Valley to work with Steve Jobs at NeXT. When that also failed, River starts his own company, eHomeLoan, with two friends, hoping to make getting a mortgage simpler, faster and cheaper for American families. Also, and not incidentally, to become a member of the Billionaire Boys Club.

When the internet bubble bursts in 2000, River vows not to fail like so many other start-ups. He opts to originate toxic sub-prime loans that rip-off naïve consumers and brings in shady operators to execute the plan. He then learns the real money can be had by laundering money for Russian Oligarchs that he meets via a beautiful Russian agent. What could go wrong?

©2025 Bill Kelvie (P)2025 Bill Kelvie