Review of Global Securitisation and CDOs (The Wiley Finance Series) (Hardcover)

Although not smooth reading, "Global Securitisation and CDOs" by Mr. John Deacon, provides a comprehensive lay of the Collateralized Debt Obligation (CDO) landscape - certainly the sexiest area of securitization and one of the most exciting areas of modern finance.I have worked with CDOs for over two years and find the ever evolving nature of both sides of the CDO world very exciting; their shifting asset structures and their evolving liability configurations make each deal unique from the next.

Overwhelmingly, one senses that "Global Securitisation and CDOs" was written by an industry expert brimming with superb information and an outstanding legal background.And certainly, that is exactly what Mr. John Deacon is.His genuine passion for CDOs and structured finance is self evident.However, similarly obvious, this tome was not written by a professor, professional teacher, or consultant willing to lead you on a structured path toward CDO knowledge.At times, the work reads more like a study than an actual book; information is thrown at the reader without enough connections, structure and signposting.

Fundamentally, "Global Securitisation and CDOs" is a very good (and much needed) handbook/reference guide with useful graphs and tables.I recommend it as a reference guide - suitable for a mixture of skimming and in-depth reading - and as a fantastic starting point for intelligent CDO conversation.



Click Here to see more reviews about: Global Securitisation and CDOs (The Wiley Finance Series) (Hardcover)

Review of Handbook of Structured Financial Products (Hardcover)

The book is excellent. It clarifies the whole variety of asset-backed and asset-backed securities, their pricing, structuring etc. Too bad that MBS have made such a mess on the financial markets :( Yet, this does not influence the fact that Fabozzi's book would be of great help to anyone, who would want to invest in ABS/MBS



Click Here to see more reviews about: Handbook of Structured Financial Products (Hardcover)

Review of After the Trade is Made: Processing Securities Transactions, Second Edition (Hardcover)

Publisher New York Institute of Finance (former training arm of the NYSE) has another hit book here!This book steps you through a fictional stockbrokerage firm: "Stone, Forrest & Rivers" and leaves nodepartment out except the one we know so well: Sales.

You find out aboutthe business of the Purchase & Sales department, Margin Department,Reorg Dept. and several others.This is the easy way for a newcomer to thesecurities industry to find out how the firm actually runs.

When I was astudent at NASD "Phase" classes--training designed to get newexaminers (the NASD is the largest regulator of the securities industry,with more examiners than even the US SEC) up to speed quickly on theworking details of the stock brokerage and investment banking industry--Inoticed an earlier edition of this book in the bookshelf in the classroom. I asked about it because another, veteran examiner told me to get the book. The training instructor said "There is no other book like it. ..""It is the best there is for covering the entire operationsof the back office of a stockbroker".

It is no wonder this book is ahit with Lehman Bros. or with CPA firm Deloitte & Touche (they need toaudit stockbrokerage firms). If you are only investing, you don't need thisbook, but if you are charged with running a broker-dealer or auditing it,then this is the book to get you up to speed quickly!



Click Here to see more reviews about: After the Trade is Made: Processing Securities Transactions, Second Edition (Hardcover)

Review of The Handbook of Fixed Income Securities, 6th Edition (Hardcover)

I used this book as a text for a graduate level "Fixed Income Analysis" course. This book covers almost all the fixed income financial instruments from plain vanilla bonds to interest rate derivatives. However, reading this book leaves the reader with a desire for more than just the peripheral knowledge, which is all this book offers.

Theoretically, this book justfies its being called a handbook, but on the mathematical front, it stands absolutely nowhere. There are little or no examples used in the text even though the author touches base on the advanced topics sometimes. Any fixed income practioner, including me, will tell you that ONE JUST CANNOT LEARN FIXED INCOME CONCEPTS WITHOUT GRASPING THE MATH BEHIND THEM, and this book scores poorly in the quantitative analysis. Fixed income securities are extremely sensitive to interest rate fluctuations, and hence, it would be only sensible to present atleast a few chapters trying to explore the concepts used in the modeling of interest rates. But this book doesn't do that. There is little quantitative discussion about duration and convexity, two of the most important risk-measurement tools for bonds.

Since it is called a handbook, I don't see any reason why the author should hold back advanced concepts from the readers. Conversely, since this book doesn't attempt to teach all the concepts to its readers, it should not be called a handbook. This problem is actually common to all the Fabozzi books. Either his math is weak, or he is just busy making money writing a handbook on every possible fixed income security. It's only a shame that a capable and learned individual like him should do such a sloppy job.

I would recommend books by Bruce Tuckman, Garbade, or Horne for more advanced and intelligent discussions on fixed income securities and interest rates rather than this book. One really need not waste money on this book. Theory on Fixed Income instruments is widely available from Federal Reserve publications, which are almost always free. Put your money only where it will produce fixed & positive returns - Fixed Income 101.



Click Here to see more reviews about: The Handbook of Fixed Income Securities, 6th Edition (Hardcover)

Review of LEAPS: Long-Term Equity Anticipation Securites: What They Are and How to Use Them for Profit and Protection (Hardcover)

I read this book from the context of a long-term buy and hold, value-oriented investor.Although I take what options/LEAPS experts saywith a grain of salt because their perspective is so often technically(read: chart, volatility) oriented, at the end of the day I must concedethat Harrison Roth's claim that there is an options/LEAPS strategy forevery cloth is accurate.Roth's book is much funner to read than theaverage investment strategy book.Rereading "LEAPS" is hardly achore --and readers will likely find themselves rereading, with pleasure,as new investment opportunities arise.



Click Here to see more reviews about: LEAPS: Long-Term Equity Anticipation Securites: What They Are and How to Use Them for Profit and Protection (Hardcover)

Review of Fast Profits in Hard Times: 10 Secret Strategies to Make You Rich in an Up or Down Economy (Hardcover)

Fast Profits in Hard Times well worth the money. It highlights ten successful strategies for wealth accumulation that work in rising or falling economic conditions. By wealth accumulation I mean money earned on investments. You still need seed money to start the process, of course.

Everyone knows it's easy to make money on investments when the stock market is bullish. Buy low and sell high. Even the worst mutual fund manager can't help but look like a star under this scenario. But what do you do when the bears come out? How do you generate a healthy return when stocks are dropping? This book helps answer these nagging questions.

The text is less than 250 pages, so it's an easy read. The style of writing is direct; it's like Jordan E. Goodman is sitting across the table from you in a conference room. There are ample call-outs and highlights to make sure you catch and remember the most important points of each of the ten chapters.

My favorite chapters are the ones on high-yield equities, dividend reinvestment programs (DRIPs), bonds and the mysterious foreign exchange. The chapter on stock options is solid, but I think it underemphasizes the risk associated with these leveraged investments. A summary chapter at the end of the book on risk vs. return is something I longed for. Also I found the chapters on tax liens and below-market-value real estate and trusts to be a bit too timely. It seems like everyone is pushing these vehicles nowadays in the foreclosure-rich environment. But make no mistake; the chapters are well-written and chock-full of information.

I'm still chuckling about the chapter on investing in vending machines.

Armchair Interviews says: For the novice investor, Fast Profits in Hard Times is a goldmine with ten solid veins. For experienced investors, there are some good tidbits.



Click Here to see more reviews about: Fast Profits in Hard Times: 10 Secret Strategies to Make You Rich in an Up or Down Economy (Hardcover)

Review of Risk Analysis: A Quantitative Guide (Hardcover)

Whether you are attempting Monte Carlo simulation for the first time or have plenty of practical experience, Vose's book is the best text available.

Vose has done a great job providing a brief but solid introduction to probability and statistics. It also serves as a great practical reference for the details and applications of all of the commonly used probability distribution functions.

He expertly summarizes each of the main steps a modeller will face in developing a model, providing very practical examples with helpful figures illustrating exactly how to implement the example in a spreadsheet.

The introduction could be improved by describing the context of his book, largerly directed towards cost analysis of projects, in the very broad field of Quantiative Risk Analysis.If I could add a section to the book, I would devote a chapter to common errors committed by the novice modeller.Minor criticisms aside, I do not hesitate in recommending this book as a reference for experts. I think it provides the fastest routeup the learning curve for the novice modeller.



Click Here to see more reviews about: Risk Analysis: A Quantitative Guide (Hardcover)

Review of Money, Banking and Financial Markets (Hardcover)

The book I received was exactly what I was expecting!Would definitely do business with again.



Click Here to see more reviews about: Money, Banking and Financial Markets (Hardcover)

Review of Security Analysis: Sixth Edition, Foreword by Warren Buffett (Security Analysis Prior Editions) (Hardcover)

To anyone who is reading this, Security Analysis is one of the greatest works ever written.In my opinion, you don't have time NOT to read it.

Of course, you shouldn't take every single idea written in any book, even the best, as the absolute truth.You should read Philip Fisher, William Nickerson, Adam Smith, John Burr Williams, John Bogle, Douglas Andrew, and so on, and take all the gems from each book, no matter how small (or how many), and piece together your own method of creating wealth.Don't be a sheep, be a sheperd, and put together your own flock.

That being said, read Security Analysis, and read it well.Highlight important points, draw arrows, create charts and diagrams representing key points.

Master this material.

You owe it to yourself.If you want to be an expert investor, you will put in this amount of effort in every book you read, especially the greatest works, like Security Analysis.You won't get rich by half-assing.This book is a priceless gem, and, although it may take several months of reading and research to understand its concepts, it will be well worth your while.



Click Here to see more reviews about: Security Analysis: Sixth Edition, Foreword by Warren Buffett (Security Analysis Prior Editions) (Hardcover)

Review of Interest Rate Swaps and Their Derivatives: A Practitioner's Guide (Wiley Finance) (Hardcover)

There are loads of books on the theory behind derivatives pricing - this book is unique in that it identifies and clearly explains the important practical aspects of these markets, including the jargon and conventions. Even after 20 years in the industry, this book completed many gaps in my knowledge base. It fills an important gap between the Handbook of Fixed Income Securities and Options, Futures and Other Derivatives.



Click Here to see more reviews about: Interest Rate Swaps and Their Derivatives: A Practitioner's Guide (Wiley Finance) (Hardcover)

Review of Interest Rate, Term Structure, and Valuation Modeling (Hardcover)

I was pleasantly surprised by the clarity of the writing by most of the authors in this book.As its title suggests, this book has a solid discussion of interest rate models, term structure, and different valuation models for interest rates.After reading this book, you should become familiar with the various interest rate models, such as Cox-Ingersoll-Ross and Health-Jarrow-Morton.The book goes through many topics (e.g., modeling, yield curves, term structure, valuation, path dependency, etc.) with sufficient depth and it provides many examples that are relatively easy to follow.

In addition, the discussion of interest rate factor models is also interesting, and I like the part where they relate some of the factor models for interest rates to their counterparts in equities (as factor models for equities are much more common, e.g. APT, CAPM).Moreover, modeling of interest rates is an interesting subject, although it can get quite complex.I think this book handles it pretty well.There is a discussion of the use of the lattice method (i.e., trees) and Monte Carlo simulation.There is also an excellent discussion of the significance of mean reversion.

However, because the chapters of this book are written by different authors, there are two major issues that I find quite annoying.First, the discussion in some chapters gets repeated in other chapters, thereby wasting time and space (i.e., paper).It is highly annoying to read a discussion of interest rate models in multiple chapters, but I guess on the bright side it helps you remember the models.Second, the writing styles can vary substantially.There are some chapters that are written really well, while other chapters are just the opposite.In particular, I didn't like the chapter on Measuring the Plausibility of Interest Rate Shocks.



Click Here to see more reviews about: Interest Rate, Term Structure, and Valuation Modeling (Hardcover)

Review of The Handbook of Nonagency Mortgage-Backed Securities, 2nd Edition (Hardcover)

This book had benefited me in my daily job.Our systems involving every area of MBS/ABS, and I could easily look up the area like Prepayment, Default/Loss, alt-A, HELOC, 125 LTV.Without this book, I could hardly understand the business logic behind the C++ code.Now with this book, I could finish my job at light speed.



Click Here to see more reviews about: The Handbook of Nonagency Mortgage-Backed Securities, 2nd Edition (Hardcover)