Traders, Guns & Money: Knowns and unknowns in the dazzling world of derivatives
The author has performed a great service to all of us who have heard talk of derivatives and wondered what all the fuss was about. It is both an entertaining and informative read and an indictment of the investment banks that crank these financial products out.
He shows first how Wall Street fools its clients by creating incomprehensible products chock full of profits to them as seller but markets them as the financial cure for cancer, without including the long and unwelcome list of potentially deadly side effects in their sales pitch.
Second, he shows how Wall Street has fooled itself into believing they understand and have properly hedged their own exposure. The system will inevitably blow up, but the traders will already have moved on with their gigantic bonuses made using other people's money and someone else will be left to hold the bag and clean up the mess.
Want to know more about how the sub-prime crisis came about? Read the last section. Wonder how Goldman Sachs got out of it without so much of a scratch? The "tone" of the book will let you know. Just a really insightful and pleasurable read if you like the exciting world of high finance.
After reading this you wont trust a banker/broker ever again.
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