Financial Markets & Corporate Strategy

Book Description

The authors began writing the First Edition of this textbook in early 1988. It took almost 10 years to complete this effort, because they did not want to write an ordinary textbook. Their goal was to write a book that would break new ground in both the understanding and explanation of finance and its practice. They wanted to write a book that would influence the way people think about, teach, and practice finance. A book that would elevate the level of discussion and analysis in the classroom, in the corporate boardroom, and in the conference rooms of Wall Street firms. They wanted a book that would sit on the shelves of financial executives as a useful reference manual, long after the executives had studied and received a degree. They were successful in their endeavor. The success of the first edition of Financial Markets and Corporate Strategy was very heartening. The market for this text has expanded every year, and it is well-known as the cutting edge textbook in corporate finance around the world. The book is used in a variety of courses, both for introductory courses and advanced electives. Some schools have even changed their curriculum to design it around this text. The authors have developed this Second Edition based on the comments of many reviewers and colleagues; producing what is a more reader-friendly book. The most consistent comment from users of the first edition was a request for a chapter on the key ingredients of valuation: accounting, cash flows, and basic discounting. This ultimately led to a new chapter in the text, Chapter 9, which is currently available in the "Sample Chapter" section of the book's website. In almost every chapter, examples are updated, vignettes changed, numbers modified, statements checked for currency and historical accuracy, and exercises and examples are either modified or added to. The goal of the Second Edition is to make the book ever more practical, pedagogically effective, and current.

Customer Reviews:

Unnecessarily Complex.......2006-08-28

Author devotes 2 pages to mathematically prove & philosophically justify that a manager should chose the highest NPV project before chosing the next highest NPV project. Such logic continues ad infinitum throughout the 800+ page text. Time for 3rd Ed.

A finance textbook full of errors and holes.......2005-05-07

I am a postgraduate student in finance and this book is on my reading list for corporate finance. I must say that I am not very pleased with this book. First, it seems to skip around from chapter to chapter with no real logical organizational structure. Second, it is full of typos and mistakes -- some that are quite dangerous for a proper understanding of the material. Third, it does not develop fully the statistically techniques in Chapter 4 that it builds on in later chapters. This is a major problem in my opinion. What saves this book from the lowest rating is that it does discuss empirical studies and journal articles, and it does not do an entirely awful job about the more qualitative subjects like adverse selection and capitalization policy.

For what it's worth, I received my undergraduate degree at Wharton and am now at the London School of Economics. Instead of this book, I recommend Brealey and Myer's Principles of Corporate Finance. This is what I used as an undergraduate and is what seems to be the de facto textbook in the top undergraduate and MBA programs.

N.

A Wonderful Approach to Corporate Finance.......2005-04-12

I will admit this book does not take the standard approach to learning corporate finance. The authors discuss a wide variety of common topics, ranging from market models, option valuation, capital structure concepts and decisions, to more specialized topics such as corporate governance and financial risk management.

What is unique about this book, though, is that the authors encourage students to think about problems more broadly than one often sees in introductory texts and courses. For example, the authors encourage the use of decision trees (i.e. binomial models) to value a wide range of assets, not just stocks. If one can value a stock option using a binomial tree, why not use the same framework to value a plot of undeveloped real estate, an untapped mine, or any other "real option" owned by a company?

Another reason this text is excellent is because the authors include a vast survey of recent financial and economic literature relevant for the financial decision-maker. Highly developed markets depend on the signaling of information between investors and management, creditors and debtors, customers and suppliers, and so forth; understanding the implications of these interactions and their subsequent effects is of primary importance to decision-makers.

For example, the "pecking order" theory of capital structure is one of the most well-known concepts in finance, but nonetheless often misunderstood (if you want proof of this, why did investors respond so enthusiastically to every IPO in the late 1990's?). Instead of glossing over an explanation of the theory, the book thorougly explains it and provides problems where the reader can actually work through a simplified model that really reinforces the concept.

While this book served as a good introduction to a wide scope of problems in finance, it was most useful because it helped me to apply economic tools not just to solve but to understand financial problems. The use of decision trees in the simplified, binomial model setting helped me to understand option/project valuation and risk-netural valuation, the linchpin of no-arbitrage pricing. It also has perhaps the most thorough, lucid explanation of Arbitrage Pricing Theory (APT) I've seen anywhere- for a practitioner trying to understand factor models, this chapter alone makes the book worth it.

I understand that this is a very difficult book and that the problems are beyond what one may expect in a MBA-level course. Nonetheless, finance is an increasingly competitive field whose employers are starting to demand more analytical skills and intiution from recent graduates. In response to the reviewer who said this text is not suitable for CFA preparation, I do agree with that sentiment. First, the CFA program is designed for self-study that any motivated and capable professional can handle, while Grinblatt/Titman is clearly appropriate for a rigorous MBA-level sequence in corporate finance. Second, the CFA exam emphasizes asset valuation and portfolio management, while this book stresses financial decision-making from a manager's standpoint.

While I normally don't like reviews that justify their opinions by offering credentials, I also work on Wall Street and I find the concepts taught in this book to be quite relevant in handling real-world problems.

Good basic overview of finance intersecting corp strategy.......2005-02-25

I bought this book as a recommended supplemental text for a course in Corporate Finance in the MBA program at the U of Michigan Business School. I am very glad to have this book on my shelf of financial books and have benefited from it more than once.

I can recommend it to you strongly by praising it for these reasons:

1) It puts practical flesh on the financial model bones you learned in your first course on finance. There are very good discussions of the basic and well-known fundamental theories and models, but the authors also share with us what tends to happen in the real world. And isn't that what each of us need to add to our theoretical thinking?

2) Each chapter has effective summarizing Key Concepts and Key Terms with plenty of problems to work through and a list of References and Additional Readings that enable the reader to dive deeper into the topic of the chapter just read.

3) The book is helpfully organized into six Parts that provide the framework for the discussion. Parts 1-3 are a review of "Financial Markets and Instruments", "Valuing Financial Assets", and "Valuing Real Assets". This foundation gives the student a good grounding in order to see how these principles are used in the work of managing the capital structure of a corporation. Parts 4-6 discuss the "Corporate Financial Structure", "Incentives, Information and Corporate Control", and "Risk Management". These last three sections are the real meat of the book and where a great deal of its value to the business student lies.

4) Each of the Parts has an effective and brief introduction that sets the tone for what is to be studied. Even better, at the end of each the six Parts there are two very helpful summary sections: "Practical Insights" and "Executive Perspective".

This is a specialized topic. But it is an important topic. This is a very good book that can help a serious student get grounded in some very important principals necessary to managing the financial issues facing every corporation. I recommend it.

Missed the mark! Poor coverage of contemporary issues..........2004-12-22

This text is just below par for MBA / CFA or professional use. The quality of research is very poor. I almost bought this book recently but changed my mind instead for Brigham's "Intermediate Financial Management".

Compared to other finance texts I've used before such Reilly's "Investment Analysis & Portfolio Mgt." or Chew's "New Corporate Finance", Grinblatt's text is way way behind and offers nothing new and of value to my research & professional everyday use....

DON'T BUY this lousy book!

Neural Networks in Finance: Gaining Predictive Edge in the Market (Academic Press Advanced Finance Series)

Average customer rating:

More Mathematical than Technical

Neural Networks in Finance: Gaining Predictive Edge in the Market (Academic Press Advanced Finance Series)
Paul D. McNelis
Manufacturer: Academic Press
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Binding: Hardcover

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Neural Networks and the Financial Markets: Predicting, Combining and Portfolio Optimisation (Perspectives in Neural Computing)
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ASIN: 0124859674

Book Description

This book explores the intuitive appeal of neural networks and the genetic algorithm in finance. It demonstrates how neural networks used in combination with evolutionary computation outperform classical econometric methods for accuracy in forecasting, classification and dimensionality reduction.

McNelis utilizes a variety of examples, from forecasting automobile production and corporate bond spread, to inflation and deflation processes in Hong Kong and Japan, to credit card default in Germany to bank failures in Texas, to cap-floor volatilities in New York and Hong Kong.

* Offers a balanced, critical review of the neural network methods and genetic algorithms used in finance
* Includes numerous examples and applications
* Numerical illustrations use MATLAB code and the book is accompanied by a website

Download Description

This book explores the intuitive appeal of neural networks and the genetic algorithm in finance. It demonstrates how neural networks used in combination with evolutionary computation outperform classical econometric methods for accuracy in forecasting, classification and dimensionality reduction. McNelis utilizes a variety of examples, from forecasting automobile production and corporate bond spread, to inflation and deflation processes in Hong Kong and Japan, to credit card default in Germany to bank failures in Texas, to cap-floor volatilities in New York and Hong Kong.

Customer Reviews:

More Mathematical than Technical.......2006-06-13

Defiantly more of a math book than a programming guide, but that was what I was expecting. This book explains how to use neural networks in the field of finance. It does so very logically and mathematically. You are shown how to apply neural networks to many different financial problems. But you are mostly left to yourself to actually implement the neural networks on a computer system. Some example source code is provided for MathCad, which is an expensive software package you can buy separately.

If you are already comfortable with neural network programming, and are looking to learn to apply neural networks to finance, this book is great. Being a Java programmer I used the open source JOONE package to implement some of the book's examples in Java. Though JOONE is not suited to all examples in the book, it is a good start for a Java programmer.

The book shows how neural networks can be applied to many real world financial problems. The book pays particular interest to international finance. The book examines Hong Kong and Japan, examining inflation, deflation, currency volatility, and other issues.

I found the book to be very useful in giving me an introduction to neural networks in finance.

The table of contents follows:

Chapter 1: Introduction
Part 1: Econometric Foundations
Chapter 2: What Are Neural Networks?
Chapter 3: Estimation of a Network with Evolutionary Computation
Chapter 4: Evaluation of Network Estimation
Part 2: Applications and Examples
Chapter 5: Estimating and Forecasting with Artificial Data
Chapter 6: Time Series: Examples from Industry and Finance
Chapter 7: Inflation and Deflation: Hong Kong and Japan
Chapter 8: Classification: Credit Card Default and Bank Failures
Chapter 9: Dimensionality Reduction and Implied Volatility Forecasting

Mastering Financial Calculations: A Step-by-Step Guide to the Mathematics of the Markets (Financial Times Series)

Average customer rating:

Un Excelente Libro Para Entender Las Matematicas Financieras!
Concise, informative & well communicated to intended readers
A must in your bookshelf
One of the best I've encountered
Brilliant. A Definitive Work

Mastering Financial Calculations: A Step-by-Step Guide to the Mathematics of the Markets (Financial Times Series)
Bob Steiner
Manufacturer: Financial Times/Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 027362587X

Book Description

Practical and interactive, the book contains worked examples throughout.

Customer Reviews:

Un Excelente Libro Para Entender Las Matematicas Financieras!.......2006-06-23

Es dificil encontrar un libro que te explique con tanta claridad (sencillo) el tema de las matematicas financieras. Vale la pena tenerlo.

Concise, informative & well communicated to intended readers.......2003-12-29

I am using the most recent edition (1999, ISBN027362587X) of this excellent book published by FT Prentice Hall.

This book is a concise and informative guide to the concepts and mechanics (maths) and application of financial instruments.

The author has managed to cover the wide area of financial instruments and business maths in the most concise and informative manner possible.

The added bonus of this book is that it could have been "unintentionally" written as a companion with HP financial calculator-the HP12c and the HP19BII.

As a new owner of the HP12c, I have found this book to be an excellent and indispensible guide and workbook.

Working through the examples in the book with my HP12c has helped me familarise with the RPN mode/logic of performing financial maths at the same time as I apply my understanding of the underlying concepts to the exercise questions and illustrative examples.

I am impressed that the author had even included detailed key strokes of both the HP 12c and 19BII calculators with each illustrated examples and answers to practice questions as well! Although there is afew minor errors but the overall effort is great efforts and attention to details.

This book is really true to its name, I would certainly recommend Mr Steiner's excellent work and effort to anyone who needs a refresher or an introductory course into financial instruments for both work and study.

Judging by the author's excellent effort, it would be difficult for the author himself to improve on his own work unless there are major new developments in the subject matter or if the author wishes to cover more complex and specialist areas.

A five star+ effort in my humble opinion.

A must in your bookshelf.......2002-09-20

One of the best titles you can get about pricing swaps and simple options and many other money market stuff. A lot of excersises with solutions. I dont know how this book isnt a best-seller yet.

One of the best I've encountered.......2000-10-23

As a liberal arts major who was not a math pro but had an interest in learning the tools of finance, this book was a dream come true. It explains every calculation simply and without any technical (and incomprehensible) jargon found in many textbooks. It includes examples, hints, and a glossary of important financial concepts. If you are willing to learn, then this book is for you. A good reference tool for even pros. A bit expensive but NOT sorry to have bought it.

Brilliant. A Definitive Work.......2000-09-09

This is by far the most comprehensive, easy to understand book regarding financial math I have come across in over 15 years as a Wall Street IT professional. From calculating simple interest to pricing interest rate and currency swaps to option payout diagrams this book has it all. All calculations are clearly laid out with real examples, sample questions and hints. A must have for novices and pros.

Product Development for the Service Sector: Lessons from Market Leaders

Average customer rating:

Repetitive but worthwhile
Good, Practical Book But Repetitive
Lessons from the master

Product Development for the Service Sector: Lessons from Market Leaders
Robert G. Cooper , and Scott J. Edgett
Manufacturer: Perseus Books Group
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0738201057

Book Description

How service industries can become more competitive by employing the principles of product development

As the lines between products and services become less and less distinct, managers in service industries-such as banking, insurance, financial services, utilities, and retailing-can benefit enormously by learning from product leaders, employing a rigorous product development model to create and test new offerings, develop the most promising ones, and see them to market successfully. Product development experts Scott Edgett and Robert Cooper draw from their extensive research, teaching, and consulting experience to offer service sector executives and managers a comprehensive overview of the principles of product development and how they can be applied profitably.

Customer Reviews:

Repetitive but worthwhile.......2001-10-13

Cooper is the guy if you are into development - from idea to delivery of the goods - be it a product (widget), software or services. He is a portfolio management guy that will help you wrap your thinking around making investments into ideas that are yearning to make a debut in reality.

Good, Practical Book But Repetitive.......2000-06-30

This is a very good book for managers of new service development processes. It offers a framework for designing and implementing a new service development process and there are many good advice and techniques in the book that I believe will prove invaluable to these managers. I expect this is the result of the 1,500 case studies that the authors have conducted.

I especially liked the sections that the authors have entitled "Points for Management to Ponder". These short bits, interspersed throughout the book, forces a reader to link the theories to actual situations in a company. I found such exercises beneficial to the learning process.

However, I found that the authors tend to repeat themselves throughout the book. For example, Chapter 4 and 5 are essentially the same. Chapter 4 walks through the framework fairly quickly with a real case example while Chapter 5 examines the general framework in detail. I believe the 2 chapters could have been combined without much loss to content.

I recommend this book to practitioners, as this is a very practical book. For readers who just want to know more about service development but are currently not involved in any development work, this book is not for you. Like me, you may find some of the framework difficult to understand without a real case to relate to.

Lessons from the master.......2000-06-24

Well written and full of understandings... Bob, as with all his books, has made many key points. An excellent read for anyone who's business is dependent on new services and believes that luck is not a sustainable advantage. If you believe that the event or experience marketing is the key to most sales, then becoming excellent in launching new services is a must.

An Arbitrage Guide to Financial Markets (The Wiley Finance Series)

Average customer rating:

An excellent book by a well known professional
Excellent undertaking!

An Arbitrage Guide to Financial Markets (The Wiley Finance Series)
Robert Dubil
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0470853328

Book Description

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

Download Description

"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.

""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 "

Customer Reviews:

An excellent book by a well known professional.......2005-04-15

From someone who not only read the book but also worked for the author in the risk management field, I highly recommend this book, specifically for the clarity of style and good explanations.

Excellent undertaking!.......2004-12-27

Probably the single best introduction to financial markets' mechanics. The complex workings of the financial world are decomposed into simple building blocks, that have their foundation upon the principle of risk-sharing. Maybe of all books about hedge fund strategies, this is one of the clearest and most useful expositions of the principles upon which absolute return strategies are based - even though it has no magic 'hedge fund' words in its title to capture the reader's attention. Amid a flood of useless marketing stuff about hedge funds (including some of the works of Dr. Nicholas) and extremely boring expositions of minute details about the institutional and regulatory details of various markets this is a very good achievement indeed. Although truly sophisticated readers would probably want to look elsewhere, this book gives you something essential, which painfully misses from many fields of modern knowledge - a broad picture, without which we risk not to see the wood for the trees.

Introduction to the Economics and Mathematics of Financial Markets

Average customer rating:

Good but far from perfection
Above Average but not Excellent
Lucid!

Introduction to the Economics and Mathematics of Financial Markets
Jaksa Cvitanic , and Fernando Zapatero
Manufacturer: The MIT Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Asset Pricing: (Revised)
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ASIN: 0262033208

Book Description

Introduction to the Economics and Mathematics of Financial Markets fills the longstanding need for an accessible yet serious textbook treatment of financial economics. The book provides a rigorous overview of the subject, while its flexible presentation makes it suitable for use with different levels of undergraduate and graduate students. Each chapter presents mathematical models of financial problems at three different degrees of sophistication: single-period, multi-period, and continuous-time. The single-period and multi-period models require only basic calculus and an introductory probability/statistics course, while an advanced undergraduate course in probability is helpful in understanding the continuous-time models. In this way, the material is given complete coverage at different levels; the less advanced student can stop before the more sophisticated mathematics and still be able to grasp the general principles of financial economics.

The book is divided into three parts. The first part provides an introduction to basic securities and financial market organization, the concept of interest rates, the main mathematical models, and quantitative ways to measure risks and rewards. The second part treats option pricing and hedging; here and throughout the book, the authors emphasize the Martingale or probabilistic approach. Finally, the third part examines equilibrium models -- a subject often neglected by other texts in financial mathematics, but included here because of the qualitative insight it offers into the behavior of market participants and pricing.

Customer Reviews:

Good but far from perfection.......2007-09-05

I used this book as a TA for a course in introduction to finance for first-year graduate students last semester. Proofs and mathematical expositions are quite rigorous. The contents cover most of the importan parts in modern theories of finance. It is quite self-contained with introduction to Brownian Motion and Ito's lemma. However, its shortcoming is much like other books in modern advanced economics - it fails to capture the intuition behind those fancy expositions. Although brownian motion, Ito's calculus and fundamental theorems of finance are thoroughly introduced, it fails to explain students the basic ideas behind these concepts. Because I used this book to teach students as a TA, I know that without any guidance students are very likely to be lost in the mathematical expositions in these books. Moreover, this book has a lot of typos! Be careful! Overall, this is quite a good book. The level is appropriate for first-year graduate course in finance. Although the level is appropriate, it is far from being a good textbook.

Above Average but not Excellent.......2005-08-21

This book is easier to read than Duffie's Dynamic Asset Pricing Theory and I would say is comparable to that of Bjork's Arbitrage Theory in Continuous-Time. The good thing about this book is that it covers the major topics required for the understanding of financial markets, i.e. stocks, bonds, interest rates, risk, dynamic programming, options, etc. One thing that I did not like is that in the middle of the section they switch for discrete-time to continuous-time and then back and forth again. It would have been better, in my opinion, to do discrete-time as a whole and then a separate section in continuous-time. In addition, the solutions manual that accompany does not seem like it's worth the $20+ you pay for it. It's extremely thin and contains solutions to "some" problems only.

Lucid!.......2004-05-25

Excellent, highly readable, solid and intuitive. Lucid on all aspects of Math Finance, with both Econ and Math theory in mind. This can be a good replacement for Hull.

Trading on the Edge: Neural, Genetic, and Fuzzy Systems for Chaotic Financial Markets (Wiley Finance)

Average customer rating:

Waste if money
Hi-tech is always the best???????????
Covers a lot.

Trading on the Edge: Neural, Genetic, and Fuzzy Systems for Chaotic Financial Markets (Wiley Finance)

Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Neural Networks in Finance: Gaining Predictive Edge in the Market (Academic Press Advanced Finance Series)
Genetic Algorithms and Investment Strategies (Wiley Finance)
Cybernetic Trading Strategies: Developing a Profitable Trading System with State-of-the-Art Technologies
Genetic Algorithms and Genetic Programming in Computational Finance
Evidence-Based Technical Analysis: Applying the Scientific Method and Statistical Inference to Trading Signals

ASIN: 0471311006

Book Description

Experts from the world's major financial institutions contributed to this work and have already used the newest technologies. Gives proven strategies for using neural networks, algorithms, fuzzy logic and nonlinear data analysis techniques to enhance profitability. The latest analytical breakthroughs, the impact on modern finance theory and practice, including the best ways for profitably applying them to any trading and portfolio management system, are all covered.

Customer Reviews:

Waste if money.......2005-08-02

What good is this book withut tradestation code. Eventually you will not use it and will set on your book shelf collecting dust. I suspect the author knows how to program and all other author like him. Topics studied in MS computer science software courses leave it to programers to write, since they are qualified than those who don't know how, But can do research ans sell a book to excited hope to be traders.

Hi-tech is always the best???????????.......2001-08-07

My interest in NN/GA started 3 years ago and I found this book. It covers some advanced methods for trading. But I am not sure whether they are really better than the traditional technical analysis. The results in this book could not prove it. And some authors didn't disclose their methods clearly. It seems to be very common among people who are using NN/GA/fuzzy logic in trading. So it is hard to know the reliability and accuracy of their results. And we cannot repeat their experiments. Personally, I won't use them in trading. I also gradually lose the interest in this area. I would like to know anyone really made profit by using them.

Covers a lot........1999-06-27

Discusses financial applications of neural networks, genetic algorithms and fuzzy logic. Is aimed at the beginner to intermediate level. Focuses more on data processing and application than on the actual building of neural nets. Several useful examples are given. Sections are written by experts in that particular field. This is usually advantageous except ocassionally where terminology may not always be consistent between sections. Overall a good book if you know how to write your own NN/GA/FUZZY program or have access to one.

Financial Market Complexity: What Physics Can Tell Us About Market Behaviour (Economics & Finance)

Average customer rating:

Lucid, dense and sound econophysics book

Financial Market Complexity: What Physics Can Tell Us About Market Behaviour (Economics & Finance)
Neil F. Johnson , Paul Jefferies , and Pak Ming Hui
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Dynamics of Markets: Econophysics and Finance
Patterns of Speculation: A Study in Observational Econophysics
Introduction to Econophysics: Correlations and Complexity in Finance
The Statistical Mechanics of Financial Markets (Texts and Monographs in Physics)
Two's Company, Three is Complexity

ASIN: 0198526652

Book Description

Financial markets are a fascinating example of 'complexity in action': a real-world complex system whose evolution is dictated by the decisions of crowds of traders who are continually trying to win in a vast global 'game'. This book draws on recent ideas from the highly-topical science of complexity and complex systems, to address the following questions: how do financial markets behave? Why do financial markets behave in the way that they do? What can we do to minimize risk, given this behavior? Standard finance theory is built around several seemingly innocuous assumptions about market dynamics. This book shows how these assumptions can give misleading answers to crucially important practical problems such as minimizing financial risk, coping with extreme events such as crashes or drawdowns, and pricing derivatives. After discussing the background to the concept of complexity and the structure of financial markets in Chapter 1, Chapter 2 examines the assumptions upon which standard finance theory is built. Reality sets in whith Chapter 3, where data from two seemingly different markets are analyzed and certain universal features uncovered which cannot be explained within standard finance theory. Chapters 4 and 5 mark a significant departure from the philosophy of standard finance theory, being concerned with exploring microscopic models of markets which are faithful to real market microstructure yet, which also reproduce real-world features. Chapter 6 moves to the practical problem of how to quantify and hedge risk in real world markets. Chapter 7 discusses deterministic descriptions of market dynamics, incorporating the topics of chaos and the all-important phenomenon of market crashes.

Customer Reviews:

Lucid, dense and sound econophysics book.......2004-06-01

This book is written in a very dense fashion and should be compared to a math or physics text and obviously not to the advertised get rich quick books.

The style is very clear and very dense. The introduction says more about the financial market as many long texts. Also the definitions are precise and do contain content. Alone this introduction is worthwhile for anybody in the business of specifying a financial software system. It saves literally weeks of work.

As a next step a very dense overview of the "standard" finance theory is presented (first order Markov...). The authors even succeed to explain the Black Scholes option-pricing model in a few pages. I am very thankful for this.

The main impetus of the authors is to apply complexity theory to financial markets and get in return a good and existing example of a complex system. They look deeply into the limits of the independent and identical distributed probability function assumption. Also higher order correlations, the effect of competing and partly collaborating agents is discussed.

Book Description

In the past quarter of a century, the pace of structural change in the equity markets has accelerated dramatically and, as it has, regulation has come to play an increasingly central role in the development of market structure. The purpose of Regulation of U.S. Equity Markets is to consider regulation's contribution to the efficiency of the U.S. equity markets. Sharply different opinions are expressed on the matter, as the discussion ranges from Congressional oversight, to SEC involvement in market structure issues, to the self-regulatory responsibilities of the market centers, most notably, the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq Stock Market.

The Statistical Mechanics of Financial Markets (Texts and Monographs in Physics)

Average customer rating:

Excelllent introduction and very stimulating
Very useful bridge between physics methodologies and finance

The Statistical Mechanics of Financial Markets (Texts and Monographs in Physics)
Johannes Voit
Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Introduction to Econophysics: Correlations and Complexity in Finance
Patterns of Speculation: A Study in Observational Econophysics
Dynamics of Markets: Econophysics and Finance
Theory of Financial Risk and Derivative Pricing: From Statistical Physics to Risk Management
Why Stock Markets Crash: Critical Events in Complex Financial Systems

Accessories:

Advances in Dynamic Game Theory: Numerical Methods, Algorithms, and Applications to Ecology and Economics (Annals of the International Society of Dynamic Games)
A Course in Derivative Securities: Introduction to Theory and Computation (Springer Finance)
Game Theory: Decisions, Interaction and Evolution (Springer Undergraduate Mathematics Series)

ASIN: 3540262857

Book Description

This highly praised introductory treatment describes the parallels between statistical physics and finance - both those established in the 100-year long interaction between these disciplines, as well as new research results on financial markets. The random-walk technique, well known in physics, is also the basic model in finance, upon which are built, for example, the Black-Scholes theory of option pricing and hedging, plus methods of portfolio optimization. Here the underlying assumptions are assessed critically. Using empirical financial data and analogies to physical models such as fluid flows, turbulence, or superdiffusion, the book develops a more accurate description of financial markets based on random walks. With this approach, novel methods for derivative pricing and risk management can be formulated. Computer simulations of interacting-agent models provide insight into the mechanisms underlying unconventional price dynamics. It is shown that stock exchange crashes can be modelled in ways analogous to phase transitions and earthquakes, and sometimes have even been predicted successfully. This third edition of "The Statistical Mechanics of Financial Markets" especially stands apart from other treatments because it offers new chapters containing a practitioner's treatment of two important current topics in banking: the basic notions and tools of risk management and capital requirements for financial institutions, including an overview of the new Basel II capital framework which may well set the risk management standards in scores of countries for years to come.

Customer Reviews:

Excelllent introduction and very stimulating.......2006-02-02

This book was my first thorough introduction to this field and I have found it thoroughly enjoyable. The comparisions between the tools of Physics and Finance along with the presentation of empirical data was highly stimulating. The economic terms were presented with lucidity and conciseness and the use of relevant examples in both Physics and Finance made it an easy read. Also of great value was it comparisons of standard economic theory with various tools within Physics.

This book also provides a very complete Bibliography where one can find classical and neoclassical economic texts and further references and directions in this relatively new field. I highly reccomend it to any Physicist looking to go into Finance or just as a good read and also to (neo) classical econonomists and financial engineers alike.

I also deeply appreciated the respect it showed to economists and its straightforward, non preachy manner that many Physicists are often guilty of!

Thanks

Very useful bridge between physics methodologies and finance.......2002-03-10

Very useful book, particularly in what concerns alternative L-Stable distributions. True, not too versed in financial theory but I'd rather see the author erring on the side of more physics than mathematical economics. As an author I don't ask much from books, just to deliver what they indend. This one does.

Clear historical description of Einstein/Bachelier. Hopefully one day we will call derivatives pricing the Bachelier valuation.

The book in short provides an excellent perspective on the statistical approach to asset price dynamics. Very clear and to the point.

Nassim Nicholas Taleb

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