Applied C# in Financial Markets

On the trading floor, all action is based on news, therefore rumors in financial markets are an everyday phenomenon. Rumors are the oldest mass medium in the world and their nature is still difficult to grasp. Scientifically, not much is known about rumors, especially in the financial markets, where their consequences can have real money consequences. Rumors in Financial Markets provides a fresh insight to the topic, combining the theory of Behavioral Finance with that of Experimental Finance–a new and innovative scientific method which observes real decision makers in a controlled, clearly structured environment. Using the results from surveys and experiments, the author argues that rumors in the context of financial markets are built on three cornerstones: Finance, Psychology and Sociology. The book provides insights into how rumors evolve, spread and are traded on and provides explanations as to why volatility rockets, strong price movements, herding behavior for example, occur for apparently no good reason.

A practice-oriented guide to using C# to design and program pricing and trading models In this step-by-step guide to software development for financial analysts, traders, developers and quants, the authors show both novice and experienced practitioners how to develop robust and accurate pricing models and employ them in real environments. Traders will learn how to design and implement applications for curve and surface modeling, fixed income products, hedging strategies, plain and exotic option modeling, interest rate options, structured bonds, unfunded structured products, and more. A unique mix of modern software technology and quantitative finance, this book is both timely and practical. The approach is thorough and comprehensive and the authors use a combination of C# language features, design patterns, mathematics and finance to produce efficient and maintainable software. Designed for quant developers, traders and MSc/MFE students, each chapter has numerous exercises and the book is accompanied by a dedicated companion website, http://www.datasimfinancial.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=196&sid=f30022095850dee48c7db5ff62192b34, providing all source code, alongside audio, support and discussion forums for readers to comment on the code and obtain new versions of the software.

A whole is worth the sum of its parts. Even the most complex structured bond, credit arbitrage strategy or hedge trade can be broken down into its component parts, and if we understand the elemental components, we can then value the whole as the sum of its parts. We can quantify the risk that is hedged and the risk that is left as the residual exposure. If we learn to view all financial trades and securities as engineered packages of building blocks, then we can analyze in which structures some parts may be cheap and some may be rich. It is this relative value arbitrage principle that drives all modern trading and investment. This book is an easy-to-understand guide to the complex world of today’s financial markets teaching you what money and capital markets are about through a sequence of arbitrage-based numerical illustrations and exercises enriched with institutional detail. Filled with insights and real life examples from the trading floor, it is essential reading for anyone starting out in trading. Using a unique structural approach to teaching the mechanics of financial markets, the book dissects markets into their common building blocks: spot (cash), forward/futures, and contingent (options) transactions. After explaining how each of these is valued and settled, it exploits the structural uniformity across all markets to introduce the difficult subjects of financially engineered products and complex derivatives. The book avoids stochastic calculus in favour of numeric cash flow calculations, present value tables, and diagrams, explaining options, swaps and credit derivatives without any use of differential equations.

There are many books covering Fibonacci from an artistic and historical point of view and almost as many suggesting that Fibonacci retracements and numbers can be successfully applied to financial market time series. What is missing is a book that addresses the common errors in using screen based Fibonacci (and Gann and other tools). The book is a critical exploration of Fibonacci numbers, retracements, projections, timeframes and fanlines and their current usage within the financial markets by technical analysts. Although they can be extremely effective analytical tools when used appropriately, mistakes in usage can be extremely costly from a financial and credibility viewpoint. George MacLean takes a brief look at the history of Fibonacci and Gann, before providing a full account of their applications in financial markets, including fixed income, equity, foreign exchange, commodities and indexes. In particular, he draws attention to the overuse and misuse of easily applied computer packages available to professional and amateur traders.

An accessible and detailed overview of the risks posed by financial institutions Understanding Systemic Risk in Global Financial Markets offers an accessible yet detailed overview of the risks to financial stability posed by financial institutions designated as systemically important. The types of firms covered are primarily systemically important banks, non-banks, and financial market utilities such as central counterparties. Written by Aron Gottesman and Michael Leibrock, experts on the topic of systemic risk, this vital resource puts the spotlight on coherency, practitioner relevance, conceptual explanations, and practical exposition. Step by step, the authors explore the specific regulations enacted before and after the credit crisis of 2007-2009 to promote financial stability. The text also examines the criteria used by financial regulators to designate firms as systemically important. The quantitative and qualitative methods to measure the ongoing risks posed by systemically important financial institutions are surveyed. A review of the regulations that identify systemically important financial institutions The tools to use to detect early warning indications of default A review of historical systemic events their common causes Techniques to measure interconnectedness Approaches for ranking the order the institutions which pose the greatest degree of default risk to the industry Understanding Systemic Risk in Global Financial Markets offers a must-have guide to the fundamentals of systemic risk and the key critical policies that work to reduce systemic risk and promoting financial stability.

A comprehensive text on financial market operations management Financial Market Operations Management offers anyone involved with administering, maintaining, and improving the IT systems within financial institutions a comprehensive text that covers all the essential information for managing operations. Written by Keith Dickinson—an expert on the topic—the book is comprehensive, practical, and covers the five essential areas of operations and management including participation and infrastructure, trade life cycle, asset servicing, technology, and the regulatory environment. This comprehensive guide also covers the limitations and boundaries of operational systems and focuses on their interaction with external parties including clients, counterparties, exchanges, and more. This essential resource reviews the key aspects of operations management in detail, including an examination of the entire trade life cycle, new issue distribution of bonds and equities, securities financing, as well as corporate actions, accounting, and reconciliations. The author highlights specific operational processes and challenges and includes vital formulae, spreadsheet applications, and exhibits. Offers a comprehensive resource for operational staff in financial services Covers the key aspects of operations management Highlights operational processes and challenges Includes an instructors manual, a test bank, and a solution manual This vital resource contains the information, processes, and illustrative examples needed for a clear understanding of financial market operations.

A guide to modeling analyses for financial and sports gambling markets, with a focus on major current events Addressing the highly competitive and risky environments of current-day financial and sports gambling markets, Forecasting in Financial and Sports Gambling Markets details the dynamic process of constructing effective forecasting rules based on both graphical patterns and adaptive drift modeling (ADM) of cointegrated time series. The book uniquely identifies periods of inefficiency that these markets oscillate through and develops profitable forecasting models that capitalize on irrational behavior exhibited during these periods. Providing valuable insights based on the author's firsthand experience, this book utilizes simple, yet unique, candlestick charts to identify optimal time periods in financial markets and optimal games in sports gambling markets for which forecasting models are likely to provide profitable trading and wagering outcomes. Featuring detailed examples that utilize actual data, the book addresses various topics that promote financial and mathematical literacy, including: Higher order ARMA processes in financial markets The effects of gambling shocks in sports gambling markets Cointegrated time series with model drift Modeling volatility Throughout the book, interesting real-world applications are presented, and numerous graphical procedures illustrate favorable trading and betting opportunities, which are accompanied by mathematical developments in adaptive model forecasting and risk assessment. A related web site features updated reviews in sports and financial forecasting and various links on the topic. Forecasting in Financial and Sports Gambling Markets is an excellent book for courses on financial economics and time series analysis at the upper-undergraduate and graduate levels. The book is also a valuable reference for researchers and practitioners working in the areas of retail markets, quant funds, hedge funds, and time series. Also, anyone with a general interest in learning about how to profit from the financial and sports gambling markets will find this book to be a valuable resource.

A highly visual look at major investment opportunities from the minds at Bloomberg The essential guide for anyone trying to get a handle on the fundamentals of investing, the Bloomberg Visual Guide to Financial Markets distills 30 years of Bloomberg expertise into one straightforward, easy-to-read volume. The book teaches readers about three basic investment options—governments, companies, and real assets, including gold and other commodities—and offers valuable insights into money-market securities, bonds, stocks, derivatives, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, and alternatives. Designed to help financial professionals, students of finance, and individual investors understand the markets in which they're investing, the book begins with simple investments before moving on to more complex choices. Explains bonds, stocks, derivatives, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, and alternatives such as hedge funds Explores the three Rs of returns, risks, and relative value that are associated with each type of investment Provides a highly visual presentation with an emphasis on graphics and professional applications The Bloomberg Visual Guide to Financial Markets gives the reader a clear picture of what underlies market structure, instruments, and dynamics and how to capitalize on these elements.

An Arbitrage Guide to Financial Markets is the first book to explicitly show the linkages of markets for equities, currencies, fixed income and commodities. Using a unique structural approach, it dissects all markets the same way: into spot, forward and contingent dimensions, bringing out the simplicity and the commonalities of all markets. The book shuns stochastic calculus in favor of cash flow details of arbitrage trades. All math is simple, but there is lots of it. The book reflects the relative value mentality of an institutional trader seeking profit from misalignments of various market segments. The book is aimed at entrants into investment banking and dealing businesses, existing personnel in non-trading jobs, and people outside of the financial services industry trying to gain a view into what drives dealers in today’s highly integrated marketplace. A committed reader is guaranteed to leave with a deep understanding of all current issues. «This is an excellent introduction to the financial markets by an author with a strong academic approach and practical insights from trading experience. At a time when the proliferation of financial instruments and the increased use of sophisticated mathematics in their analysis, makes an introduction to financial markets intimidating to most, this book is very useful. It provides an insight into the core concepts across markets and uses mathematics at an accessible level. It equips readers to understand the fundamentals of markets, valuation and trading. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to understand the essentials of successfully trading, structuring or using the entire range of financial instruments available today.» —Varun Gosain, Principal, Constellation Capital Management, New York «Robert Dubil, drawing from his extensive prior trading experience, has made a significant contribution by writing an easy to understand book about the complex world of today’s financial markets, using basic mathematical concepts. The book is filled with insights and real life examples about how traders approach the market and is required reading for anyone with an interest in understanding markets or a career in trading.» —George Handjinicolaou, Partner, Etolian Capital, New York «This book provides an excellent guide to the current state of the financial markets. It combines academic rigour with the author’s practical experience of the financial sector, giving both students and practitioners an insight into the arbitrage pricing mechanism.» —Zenji Nakamura, Managing Director, Europe Fixed Income Division, Nomura International plc, London

Praise for Financial Markets, Banking, and Monetary Policy “A lucid treatment that takes on board shadow-banking, Dodd-Frank, the zero lower bound, and forward guidance. In short, all the key post-crisis issues.” —Anil Kashyap, Edward Eagle Brown Professor of Economics and Finance, University of Chicago “The financial sector is a vital component of the US economic machinery. The Federal Reserve works within this sector to promote its congressional mandates of maximum employment and low inflation. Unfortunately, the contribution of the financial system to the economy’s performance is not well understood. Students of standard college courses on money, banking, and monetary policy often find that the textbooks have not kept pace with the evolution of the financial sector, including the rise of securitized finance and the Federal Reserve’s evolving monetary operations. Tom Simpson’s book represents a huge step forward in this regard. His comprehensive exposition of the essential parts of the financial system and modern explanation of how the Federal Reserve supports the economy gives readers a much better understanding of the US financial system and the Federal Reserve.” —James Glassman, Managing Director and Head Economist for the Commercial Bank, JPMorgan Chase & Co. “Financial Markets, Banking, and Monetary Policy by Tom Simpson provides a comprehensive introduction to the financial system, including the markets, institutions, and mechanisms of finance, as well as the role of the Federal Reserve and monetary policy. The economic principles underlying finance are woven through the chapters, and the book includes an insightful introduction into the causes of and responses to the recent financial crisis. Tom Simpson has had a front-row seat on financial developments in recent decades and has written a book that provides an ideal introduction to the financial system and monetary policy.” —Dan Sichel, Professor of Economics, Wellesley College