Enron
An American corporation based in Houston, Texas, that traded in energy and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December 2001. Enron's collapse stunned most investors and analysts because Enron, the seventh largest corporation in the United States, had long reported huge earnings. Subsequent investigations revealed that Enron had inflated its earnings by hiding its debt and losses in subsidiary partnerships. Although some of the company's top executives made huge profits as Enron fell apart, many of its employees saw their retirement savings in Enron's 401(k) plan wiped out by the collapse of Enron's share price.
Note
Enron's collapse raised many questions about the reliability of corporate financial statements and the potentially cozy relationships between accountants and the firms they audit.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Examples from the Web for enron
Contemporary Examples
Or a reference to Enron, or Elian Gonzalez, or the Baha Men.
While Swisscom faces challenges, nobody would put it in the company of Enron.
And in 2002, former Enron vice chairman Clifford Baxter shot himself in his BMW.
And who can forget that priceless moment from the Enron saga, as documented in the book The Smartest Guys in the Room.
Yet in their day, Ameriquest and Enron looked like innovators too, and were hailed as such.