This book offers a one-stop resource for performing quantitative risk analyses. The authors provide practical case studies along with detailed instruction and illustration of the features of ModelRisk, the most advanced risk modeling spreadsheet software currently available. The specific examples in the text demonstrate a number of cutting-edge tools and techniques that are very powerful in risk analysis but that are not available in other spreadsheet simulation programs. The book covers modeling complex correlations, aggregating uncertainty and variability, and estimating parameter and model uncertainty. The included CD-ROM provides a 120-day trial of ModelRisk.
An insightful and devastating account of how Wall Street lost its way from an insider who experienced the culture of Goldman Sachs first-hand. On March 14, 2012, more than three million people read Greg Smith's bombshell Op-Ed in the New York Times titled "Why I Am Leaving Goldman Sachs." The column immediately went viral, became a worldwide trending topic on Twitter, and drew passionate responses from former Fed chairman Paul Volcker, legendary General Electric CEO Jack Welch, and New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg. Mostly, though, it hit a nerve among the general public who question the role of Wall Street in society -- and the callous "take-the-money-and-run" mentality that brought the world economy to its knees a few short years ago. Smith now picks up where his Op-Ed left off. His story begins in the summer of 2000, when an idealistic 21-year-old arrives as an intern at Goldman Sachs and learns about the firm's Business Principle #1: Our clients' interests always come first. This remains Smith's mantra as he rises from intern to analyst to sales trader, with clients controlling assets of more than a trillion dollars. From the shenanigans of his summer internship during the technology bubble to Las Vegas hot tubs and the excesses of the real estate boom; from the career lifeline he received from an NFL Hall of Famer during the bear market to the day Warren Buffett came to save Goldman Sachs from extinction-Smith will take the reader on his personal journey through the firm, and bring us inside the world's most powerful bank. Smith describes in page-turning detail how the most storied investment bank on Wall Street went from taking iconic companies like Ford, Sears, and Microsoft public to becoming a "vampire squid" that referred to its clients as "muppets" and paid the government a record half-billion dollars to settle SEC charges. He shows the evolution of Wall Street into an industry riddled with conflicts of interest and a profit-at-all-costs mentality: a perfectly rigged game at the expense of the economy and the society at large. After conversations with nine Goldman Sachs partners over a twelve-month period proved fruitless, Smith came to believe that the only way the system would ever change was for an insider to finally speak out publicly. He walked away from his career and took matters into his own hands. This is his story.
The intimate, fly-on-the wall tale of the decline and fall of an America icon With one notable exception, the firms that make up what we know as Wall Street have always been part of an inbred, insular culture that most people only vaguely understand. The exception was Merrill Lynch, a firm that revolutionized the stock market by bringing Wall Street to Main Street, setting up offices in far-flung cities and towns long ignored by the giants of finance. With its “thundering herd” of financial advisers, perhaps no other business, whether in financial services or elsewhere, so epitomized the American spirit. Merrill Lynch was not only “bullish on America,” it was a big reason why so many average Americans were able to grow wealthy by investing in the stock market. Merrill Lynch was an icon. Its sudden decline, collapse, and sale to Bank of America was a shock. How did it happen? Why did it happen? And what does this story of greed, hubris, and incompetence tell us about the culture of Wall Street that continues to this day even though it came close to destroying the American economy? A culture in which the CEO of a firm losing $28 billion pushes hard to be paid a $25 million bonus. A culture in which two Merrill Lynch executives are guaranteed bonuses of $30 million and $40 million for four months’ work, even while the firm is struggling to reduce its losses by firing thousands of employees. Based on unparalleled sources at both Merrill Lynch and Bank of America, Greg Farrell’s Crash of the Titans is a Shakespearean saga of three flawed masters of the universe. E. Stanley O’Neal, whose inspiring rise from the segregated South to the corner office of Merrill Lynch—where he engineered a successful turnaround—was undone by his belief that a smooth-talking salesman could handle one of the most difficult jobs on Wall Street. Because he enjoyed O’Neal’s support, this executive was allowed to build up an astonishing $30 billion position in CDOs on the firm’s balance sheet, at a time when all other Wall Street firms were desperately trying to exit the business. After O’Neal comes John Thain, the cerebral, MIT-educated technocrat whose rescue of the New York Stock Exchange earned him the nickname “Super Thain.” He was hired to save Merrill Lynch in late 2007, but his belief that the markets would rebound led him to underestimate the depth of Merrill’s problems. Finally, we meet Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis, a street fighter raised barely above the poverty line in rural Georgia, whose “my way or the highway” management style suffers fools more easily than potential rivals, and who made a $50 billion commitment over a September weekend to buy a business he really didn’t understand, thus jeopardizing his own institution. The merger itself turns out to be a bizarre combination of cultures that blend like oil and water, where slick Wall Street bankers suddenly find themselves reporting to a cast of characters straight out of the Beverly Hillbillies. BofA’s inbred culture, which perceived New York banks its enemies, was based on loyalty and a good-ol’-boy network in which competence played second fiddle to blind obedience. Crash of the Titans is a financial thriller that puts you in the theater as the historic events of the financial crisis unfold and people responsible for billion of dollars of other people’s money gamble recklessly to enhance their power and their paychecks or to save their own skins. Its wealth of never-before-revealed information and focus on two icons of corporate America make it the book that puts together all the pieces of the Wall Street disaster.
Only one seal remains with her on the rock. Unlike the dark forms that have returned to the sea, her campanion is silvery white, and has fixed her in a wide-eyed, liquid gaze. She waits for a movement, when she knows that she must quickly strike. But when movement comes it is her that draws back."--Back cover.
This exhibition offers alternative perspectives of Tasmanian history. In 1835 the people of Bothwell presented the Cup to George Augustus Robinson in appreciation for establishng a conciliation with the local Aboriginal people. Today the exhibiting artists present their interpretation of the Cup and the stories around it." - Foreword [p. 3]
The New York Times bestselling author of Armed Madhouse offers a globetrotting, Sam Spade-style investigation that blows the lid off the oil industry, the banking industry, and the governmental agencies that aren't regulating either. This is the story of the corporate vultures that feed on the weak and ruin our planet in the process-a story that spans the globe and decades. For Vultures' Picnic, investigative journalist Greg Palast has spent his career uncovering the connection between the world of energy (read: oil) and finance. He's built a team that reads like a casting call for a Hollywood thriller-a Swiss multilingual investigator, a punk journalist, and a gonzo cameraman-to reveal how environmental disasters like the Gulf oil spill, the Exxon Valdez, and lesser-known tragedies such as Tatitlek and Torrey Canyon are caused by corporate corruption, failed legislation, and, most interestingly, veiled connections between the billionaires of financial industry and energy titans. Palast shows how the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Trade Organization, and Central Banks act as puppets and bandits for Big Oil. With Palast at the center of an investigation that takes us from the Arctic to Africa to the Amazon, Vultures' Picnic shows how the big powers in the money and oil game slip the bonds of regulation over and over again, and simply destroy the rules that they themselves can't write-and take advantage of nations and everyday people in the process.
How the very things we create to protect ourselves, like money market funds or anti-lock brakes, end up being the biggest threats to our safety and wellbeing. We have learned a staggering amount about human nature and disaster -- yet we keep having car crashes, floods, and financial crises. Partly this is because the success we have at making life safer enables us to take bigger risks. As our cities, transport systems, and financial markets become more interconnected and complex, so does the potential for catastrophe. How do we stay safe? Should we? What if our attempts are exposing us even more to the very risks we are avoiding? Would acceptance of danger make us more secure? Is there such a thing as foolproof? In Foolproof, Greg Ip presents a macro theory of human nature and disaster that explains how we can keep ourselves safe in our increasingly dangerous world.
This event brings together Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal artists and art historians to explore how the practice of artists has influenced contested narratives of cultural and national identity in Australian's visual histories.
AARP Digital Editions offer you practical tips, proven solutions, and expert guidance. One positive side-effect of the recent financial market meltdown that toppled giant, century-old institutions and cost millions their jobs is that it created a strong desire among many Americans to better understand how the U.S. economy functions. In TheLittle Book of Economics, Greg, Ip, one of the country's most recognized and respected economics journalists, walks readers through how the economy really works. Written for the inquisitive layman who doesn't want to plow through academic jargon and Greek letters or pore over charts and tables, The Little Book of Economics offers indispensible insight into how the American economy works – or, doesn't. With engaging and accessible prose, the book Provides a comprehensive understanding of each aspect of our economy from inflation and unemployment to international trade and finance Serves as an insider's guide to the people and institutions that control America's economy such as the Federal Reserve and the federal budget Explains the roots of America's current economic crisis and the risks the country faces in its aftermath, such as stratospheric government debt, while offering advice on overcoming these threats Walks readers through the basic concepts and terminology they need to understand economic news Punctures myths and political spin from both the left and the right with candid and often surprising insight A must read for anyone who wants a better grasp of the economy without taking a course in economics , The Little Book of Economicsis a unique and engaging look at how the economy works in all its wonderful and treacherous ways.
A gripping, “rollicking” (John Carreyrou, New York Times bestselling author of Bad Blood) biography of Jay Gould, the greatest of the 19th-century robber barons, whose brilliance, greed, and bare-knuckled tactics made him richer than Rockefeller and led Wall Street to institute its first financial reforms. Had Jay Gould put his name on a university or concert hall, he would undoubtedly have been a household name today. The son of a poor farmer whose early life was marked by tragedy, Gould saw money as the means to give his family a better life…even if, to do so, he had to pull a fast one on everyone else. After entering Wall Street at the age of twenty-four, he quickly became notorious when he paralyzed the economy and nearly toppled President Ulysses S. Grant in the Black Friday market collapse of 1869 in an attempt to corner the market on gold—an event that remains among the darkest days in Wall Street history. Through clever financial maneuvers, he gained control over one of every six miles of the country’s rapidly expanding network for railroad tracks—coming close to creating the first truly transcontinental railroad and making himself one of the richest men in America. American Rascal shows Gould’s complex, quirky character. He was at once praised for his brilliance by Rockefeller and Vanderbilt and condemned for forever destroying American business values by Mark Twain. He lived a colorful life, trading jokes with Thomas Edison, figuring Thomas Nast’s best sketches, paying Boss Tweed’s bail, and commuting to work in a 200-foot yacht. Gould thrived in an expanding, industrial economy in which authorities tolerated inside trading and stock price manipulation because they believed regulation would stifle the progress. But by taking these practices to new levels, Gould showed how unbridled capitalism was, in fact, dangerous for the American economy. This “gripping biography” (Fortune) explores how Gould’s audacious exploitation of economic freedom triggered the first public demands for financial reforms—a call that still resonates today.
RxAmerica is a philosophical treatise that identifies social problems within The United States, provides solutions for the problems, and explains how to pay for the solutions. The book is unique in that it lacks any agenda other than providing a blueprint designed to preserve America. It is neither liberal nor conservative, but rather pragmatic and compassionate. The conclusions reached are the result of a very clear understanding about who we are as a species of animal. RxAmerica tells the truth of us and of how we interact with one another. It is both an indictment and a prayer; an indictment of what we have become as citizens of the most powerful and economically prosperous nation in civilization's history, and a prayer that our personal evolution catches up with and surpasses our technology. The topics covered are brief and direct. The purpose of the book is not to clutter up pages with pretty prose or to inundate the reader with galaxies of statistics. The purpose is to attempt to impress upon the reader that we ran out of time in the middle of the twentieth century; as of this writing we are quite honestly losing ground. We are a species of animal overwhelmed with mixed and confusing messages. We are a people praying for clarity. We need to understand in lay terms the influences and their dynamics that have so limited us in our perception. The influences are truly rooted in the corporate seduction of a beleaguered and susceptible consumer; a consumer who cries out for love and intimacy only to be offered fast food and fantasy fun. RxAmerica provides a direction that could return us back to a time when the dreams we dreamed were our own; to a time when freedom was more than a word.
The intimate, fly-on-the wall tale of the decline and fall of an America icon With one notable exception, the firms that make up what we know as Wall Street have always been part of an inbred, insular culture that most people only vaguely understand. The exception was Merrill Lynch, a firm that revolutionized the stock market by bringing Wall Street to Main Street, setting up offices in far-flung cities and towns long ignored by the giants of finance. With its “thundering herd” of financial advisers, perhaps no other business, whether in financial services or elsewhere, so epitomized the American spirit. Merrill Lynch was not only “bullish on America,” it was a big reason why so many average Americans were able to grow wealthy by investing in the stock market. Merrill Lynch was an icon. Its sudden decline, collapse, and sale to Bank of America was a shock. How did it happen? Why did it happen? And what does this story of greed, hubris, and incompetence tell us about the culture of Wall Street that continues to this day even though it came close to destroying the American economy? A culture in which the CEO of a firm losing $28 billion pushes hard to be paid a $25 million bonus. A culture in which two Merrill Lynch executives are guaranteed bonuses of $30 million and $40 million for four months’ work, even while the firm is struggling to reduce its losses by firing thousands of employees. Based on unparalleled sources at both Merrill Lynch and Bank of America, Greg Farrell’s Crash of the Titans is a Shakespearean saga of three flawed masters of the universe. E. Stanley O’Neal, whose inspiring rise from the segregated South to the corner office of Merrill Lynch—where he engineered a successful turnaround—was undone by his belief that a smooth-talking salesman could handle one of the most difficult jobs on Wall Street. Because he enjoyed O’Neal’s support, this executive was allowed to build up an astonishing $30 billion position in CDOs on the firm’s balance sheet, at a time when all other Wall Street firms were desperately trying to exit the business. After O’Neal comes John Thain, the cerebral, MIT-educated technocrat whose rescue of the New York Stock Exchange earned him the nickname “Super Thain.” He was hired to save Merrill Lynch in late 2007, but his belief that the markets would rebound led him to underestimate the depth of Merrill’s problems. Finally, we meet Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis, a street fighter raised barely above the poverty line in rural Georgia, whose “my way or the highway” management style suffers fools more easily than potential rivals, and who made a $50 billion commitment over a September weekend to buy a business he really didn’t understand, thus jeopardizing his own institution. The merger itself turns out to be a bizarre combination of cultures that blend like oil and water, where slick Wall Street bankers suddenly find themselves reporting to a cast of characters straight out of the Beverly Hillbillies. BofA’s inbred culture, which perceived New York banks its enemies, was based on loyalty and a good-ol’-boy network in which competence played second fiddle to blind obedience. Crash of the Titans is a financial thriller that puts you in the theater as the historic events of the financial crisis unfold and people responsible for billion of dollars of other people’s money gamble recklessly to enhance their power and their paychecks or to save their own skins. Its wealth of never-before-revealed information and focus on two icons of corporate America make it the book that puts together all the pieces of the Wall Street disaster.
One positive side-effect of the recent financial market meltdown that toppled giant, century-old institutions and cost millions their jobs is that it created a strong desire among many Americans to better understand how the U.S. economy functions. In The Little Book of Economics, Greg, Ip, one of the country’s most recognized and respected economics journalists, walks readers through how the economy really works. Written for the inquisitive layman who doesn’t want to plow through academic jargon and Greek letters or pore over charts and tables, The Little Book of Economics offers indispensible insight into how the American economy works – or, doesn’t. With engaging and accessible prose, the book Provides a comprehensive understanding of each aspect of our economy from inflation and unemployment to international trade and finance Serves as an insider’s guide to the people and institutions that control America’s economy such as the Federal Reserve and the federal budget Explains the roots of America’s current economic crisis and the risks the country faces in its aftermath, such as stratospheric government debt, while offering advice on overcoming these threats Walks readers through the basic concepts and terminology they need to understand economic news Punctures myths and political spin from both the left and the right with candid and often surprising insight A must read for anyone who wants a better grasp of the economy without taking a course in economics , The Little Book of Economics is a unique and engaging look at how the economy works in all its wonderful and treacherous ways.
How the very things we create to protect ourselves, like money market funds or anti-lock brakes, end up being the biggest threats to our safety and wellbeing. We have learned a staggering amount about human nature and disaster -- yet we keep having car crashes, floods, and financial crises. Partly this is because the success we have at making life safer enables us to take bigger risks. As our cities, transport systems, and financial markets become more interconnected and complex, so does the potential for catastrophe. How do we stay safe? Should we? What if our attempts are exposing us even more to the very risks we are avoiding? Would acceptance of danger make us more secure? Is there such a thing as foolproof? In Foolproof, Greg Ip presents a macro theory of human nature and disaster that explains how we can keep ourselves safe in our increasingly dangerous world.
Whether already experienced with hedge funds or just thinking about investing in them, readers need a firm understanding of this unique investment vehicle in order to achieve maximum success. Hedge Funds unites over thirty of the top practitioners and academics in the hedge fund industry to provide readers with the latest findings in this field. Their analysis deals with a variety of topics, from new methods of performance evaluation to portfolio allocation and risk/return matters. Although some of the information is technical in nature, an understanding and applicability of the results as well as theoretical developments are stressed. Filled with in-depth insight and expert advice, Hedge Funds helps readers make the most of this flexible investment vehicle.
Spotts takes you behind the scenes for the planning of a truly unprecedented campaign. He shows how individuals and groups can force even the largest corporations to change to better serve the interests of the countries and communities in which they do business.
A comprehensive guide to alternative investments that reveals today's latest research and strategies Historically low interest rates and bear markets in world stock markets have generated intense interest in alternative investments. With returns in traditional investment vehicles relatively low, many professional investors view alternative investments as a means of meeting their return objectives. Alternative Investments: Instruments, Performance, Benchmarks, and Strategies, can put you in a better position to achieve this difficult goal. Part of the Robert W. Kolb Series in Finance, Alternative Investments provides an in-depth discussion of the historic performance, benchmarks, and strategies of every major alternative investment market. With contributions from professionals and academics around the world, it offers valuable insights on the latest trends, research, and thinking in each major area. Empirical evidence about each type of alternative investment is featured, with research presented in a straightforward manner. Examines a variety of major alternative asset classes, from real estate, private equity, and commodities to managed futures, hedge funds, and distressed securities Provides detailed insights on the latest research and strategies, and offers a thorough explanation of historical performance, benchmarks, and other critical information Blends knowledge from the conceptual world of scholars with the pragmatic view of practitioners in this field Alternative investments provide a means of diversification, risk control, and return enhancement and, as such, are attractive to many professional investors. If you're looking for an effective way to hone your skills in this dynamic area of finance, look no further than this book.
Frank Murphy was a Michigan man unafraid to speak truth to power. Born in 1890, he grew up in a small town on the shores of Lake Huron and rose to become Mayor of Detroit, Governor of Michigan, and finally a U.S. Supreme Court Justice. One of the most important politicians in Michigan’s history, Murphy was known for his passionate defense of the common man, earning him the pun “tempering justice with Murphy.” Murphy is best remembered for his immense legal contributions supporting individual liberty and fighting discrimination, particularly discrimination against the most vulnerable. Despite being a loyal ally of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, when FDR ordered the removal of Japanese Americans during World War II, Supreme Court Justice Murphy condemned the policy as “racist” in a scathing dissent to the Korematsu v. United States decision—the first use of the word in a Supreme Court opinion. Every American, whether arriving by first class or in chains in the galley of a slave ship, fell under Murphy’s definition of those entitled to the full benefits of the American dream. Justice and Faith explores Murphy’s life and times by incorporating troves of archive materials not available to previous biographers, including local newspaper records from across the country. Frank Murphy is proof that even in dark times, the United States has extraordinary resilience and an ability to produce leaders of morality and courage.
The economic history of New York is filled with high-stakes drama and big figures. In Modern New York, renowned economist and political commentator Greg David tells the story of the metropolis's financial highs and lows since the 1960s. He takes a hard look at how Wall Street came to dominate the economy in the years following the wrenching decade of the Fiscal Crisis and how New York's high finance roller coaster came to affect the entire city and the world. He tackles the major controversies over real estate development, the growth of inequality, the role of immigration and the prospects for diversification. In addition Modern New York profiles the business and political leaders at the forefront of today's economic issues, as well as the average people who benefit from (and are the casualties of) the structure and cycles of this hub's capricious economy. From covert breakfasts with Wall Street heads to profiles of people like the brilliant but complex economic development artist Dan Doctoroff, Modern New York features all sorts of characters with big personalities and big wallets, from Donald Trump to Michael Bloomberg. This book takes readers on a journey to understanding the machinery and people as well as the spirit of New York. With its many great stories and applicability to other metropolises such as London, Singapore, Sydney, or Hong Kong, it will be relevant to readers around the world..
With about $450 billion in assets, funds of hedge funds are the most recent darling of investors. While hedge funds carry high risk for the promise of high returns they are designed for the very rich and for large institutional investors such as pension funds. A Fund of Hedge Funds (FOF) spreads investments among a number of hedge funds to reduce risk and provide diversification, while maintaining the potential for higher than average returns. Odds are that some pension fund of yours is invested heavily in these products, and more recently these FOFs have been opened to more and more individual investors in offshore jurisdictions with lower minimum entry levels. Since this is a new and extremely fast-moving financial phenomenon, academic research has just begun in earnest, and this is the first book to present rigorous academic research by some of the leading lights in academic finance, carefully analyzing the broad array of issues involved in FOFs. * With over $450 billion in assets, hedge funds of funds are the darling of investors * First book to present rigorous academic research about funds of funds * Leading lights in academic finance from around the world analyze the broad array of issues involved in funds of funds
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