With the collapse of Barings, the expulsion of Daiwa Bank from the United States, the bankruptcy of Orange County, California, and growing Long-Term Capital Management issues, derivatives are increasingly intruding upon the public consciousness. Key issues are whether derivatives are sufficiently understood and how they can be effectively regulated. These are acute problems because, as recent statistics show, derivatives--with a turnover of more than USD 2 trillion a day--constitute the world's biggest business activity. For lawyers, regulators and compliance officers operating in the...

Derivative instruments are the contracts used in the global market for future commodities. The value of these contracts exceeds two trillion U.S. dollars per day, making them the world's biggest market. Very little of substance has been published about this critically important business and its implications for the future direction of the world economy. This work is a collection of papers presented at the International Conference on Derivative Instruments at London University's Institute of Advanced Legal Studies in October 1993. It contains the current views of the world's leading...

Derivatives trading is now the world's biggest business, with an estimated daily turnover of over US $ 2.5 trillion and an annual growth rate of around 14 percent. Despite the fact that derivatives markets have ancient origins, little has been written about their long and complex history of trading and regulation. This unique new work examines the history of derivative contracts, their assignability and the regulation of derivatives markets from ancient Mesopotamia to the present day. The author concludes with an analysis of future regulatory prospects and of the implications of the...

The third edition of this clear, insightful, and authoritative work on the law and practice of market abuse in the UK and European Union, fully revised and updated to address key developments, legislation, and enforcement procedures.