Author Lewis equates Wall St bonuses with `theft`

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Author Michael Lewis, known for exposing the culture of excess at Solomon Brothers with his book "Liar's Poker," says Wall Street bonuses at banks bailed out by Washington are "a very elegant form of theft."

Lewis's latest book "The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine," to be published next week, tells the story of the 2008 financial meltdown through the prism of a few Wall Street players who spotted the weaknesses of the U.S. sub-prime mortgage market and made a fortune betting against it.

In an interview with the CBS news show "60 Minutes" to be broadcast on Sunday, Lewis described how banks have been given free rein to make big profits and reward themselves with whopping bonuses.

The big Wall Street banks "have access to a zero percent loan in virtually unlimited quantities from the Federal Reserve. You can take that money and reinvest it in Treasury bonds or government agency securities and you will get the spread and you could do it over and over," he said.