FUND MANAGER
John Paulson
Amid widespread hedge-fund carnage, the founder of the $36 billion fund Paulson & Co. racked up huge gains for the second straight year. He accurately foresaw that mortgage problems were precursors to broader finance-industry trauma.
FDIC CHAIRWOMAN
Sheila Bair
The only effective financial regulator in Washington, Bair pushed for banks to take aggressive action to forestall foreclosures. She managed the orderly failure of banks without significant depositor loss. Reward: a higher budget and more staff.
ECONOMIST
Larry Summers
Prickly former Harvard president used his Financial Timescolumn to revive his career with cogent, constructive analysis of the crisis. His force of intellect, and experience with 1990s financial meltdowns, sent him into Obama's inner circle.
CNBC ANCHOR
Erin Burnett
Knowledgeable, politely opinionated anchor managed to maintain a smile as Wall Street melted down. Wall-to-wall crisis coverage vaulted the Bail-out Babe into the rarefied air formerly occupied by "Money Honey" Maria Bartiromo.
CEO, BLACKROCK
Laurence Fink
As investors fled stocks and risky assets, the giant independent bond money manager benefited. Free of the taint of the Wall Street mortgage debacle, BlackRock has been tapped by the Fed to manage assets acquired in the Bear Stearns and AIG bailouts.