Legendary investor Bill Ackman made billions as COVID struck by dusting off a 2008-crisis-era playbook

• Bill Ackman netted billions wagering on something the market thought was a long shot.
• Ackman used a tool that helped fund managers during the 2008 crisis make billions betting against the housing market. 
• Excerpts from a new book published in Vanity Fair detail how Ackman hit it big betting on an economic cataclysm. 

Bill Ackman made billions calling the COVID-induced market crash and its aftermath, with the hedge fund manager dusting off a playbook from the last financial crisis to net huge profits for his firm.