How the City Really Works: The Definitive Guide to Money and Investing in London's Square Mile (The Times) - Softcover

Davidson, Alexander

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0749442433 ISBN 13: 9780749442439

Publisher: Kogan Page, 2006

Synopsis

<p>The City of London has more of an impact on our jobs, our money and our lives than most people realise. <i>How the City Really Works</i> aims to explain the City in language everyone can understand. It is an accessible guide for those who require a fuller picture of the City's individual mechanisms as well as its relationships with other financial centres around the globe.<br><br>This book covers the key roles within the City, from stockbrokers to foreign exchange dealers, accountants and Lloyd's underwriters, and explains how they relate to each other. Covering the main products - from derivatives to new share offerings - How the City Really Works gives you a crash course in:<br><br>City markets;<br><br>hedge funds and traders;<br><br>financial economics;<br><br>City regulation;<br><br>the City's complex relationships with the United States and Europe.<br><br>Entertaining and informative, this is a unique guide to how London's financial markets operate and offers essential advice on how investors can put that information to practical and lucrative use.</p>

About this title

About the Author

<b>Alexander Davidson </b>is a leading financial journalist who has written widely for the national press. He is the author of several books, including the best-selling <i><b>How to Win in a Volatile Stock Market</b></i> and <b><i>H</i></b><i><b>ow to Understand the Financial Pages</b></i>, both published by Kogan Page. Alexander may be contacted via his website at www.flexinvest.co.uk.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

<p><b>1 The City of London </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> A world apart<br><br> Financial markets<br><br> No gain without pain<br><br> The city is a world leader<br><br> Markets are people<br><br> The next step<br><br> <b>2 The Bank of England </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Origin<br><br> Role today<br><br> Monetary policy<br><br> Lender of last resort<br><br> International liaison<br><br> <b>3 Commercial banking </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> History<br><br> Commercial banks today<br><br> Raising finance<br><br> Credit collection<br><br> Bad loans and capital adequacy<br><br> <b>4 Introduction to equities </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> The London Stock Exchange<br><br> Shares<br><br> Market indices<br><br> Stock valuation<br><br> Market influence<br><br> Stockbrokers<br><br> Nominee accounts<br><br> <b>5 Investment banking </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Capital raising<br><br> <b>6 Introduction to derivatives </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Cash and derivatives<br><br> Four types of derivative transaction<br><br> On-exchange versus OTC derivatives<br><br> Settlement and clearing<br><br> Hedging and speculation<br><br> <b>7 Derivatives for retail investors </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Options<br><br> Futures<br><br> Warrants<br><br> Contracts for difference<br><br> Spread betting<br><br> <b>8 Wholesale market participants </b><br><br> Overview<br><br> Banks<br><br> Investors<br><br> Interdealer brokers<br><br> <b>9 Interest rate products </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Money markets<br><br> Debt securities<br><br> Repos<br><br> Interest rate derivatives<br><br> Government bonds<br><br> <b>10 Credit products </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Bonds<br><br> Credit derivatives<br><br> <b>11 Commodities </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Overview<br><br> Energy<br><br> Metals<br><br> Soft commodities<br><br> <b>12 Foreign exchange </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Global overview<br><br> In the city<br><br> The participants<br><br> Currency combinations<br><br> Transaction types<br><br> <b>13 London Stock Exchange trading systems </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Trading systems<br><br> Retail service providers<br><br> Order book developments<br><br> The trend<br><br> Market maker developments<br><br> The future<br><br> <b>14 Post-trade services </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Clearing<br><br> Settlement<br><br> Safekeeping and custody<br><br> Cross-border activity<br><br> <b>15 Investors </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Retail investors<br><br> Institutional investors<br><br> <b>16 Pooled investments </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Investment funds<br><br> Investment trusts<br><br> Exchange-traded funds<br><br> Hedge funds<br><br> <b>17 Information merry-go-round </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> The analyst<br><br> Others<br><br> PR<br><br> Journalists and tipsters<br><br> Corporate information flow<br><br> <b>18 Financial services regulation </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> History of regulation<br><br> The current regime<br><br> Fraud<br><br> Money laundering<br><br> <b>19 Corporate governance </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> The concept<br><br> The Cadbury Code<br><br> The Greenbury Committee<br><br> The Combined Code<br><br> The Turnbull Report<br><br> Accounting scandals<br><br> OECD Principles of Corporate Governance<br><br> Directors' Remuneration Report Regulations<br><br> Higgs and Smith<br><br> Revised Combined Code<br><br> The Myners Report<br><br> The US and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act<br><br> European auditing rules<br><br> Operating and financial review<br><br> International Financial Reporting Standards<br><br> Listing Rules<br><br> The future<br><br> <b>20 Insurance -- the London companies market </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> The concept<br><br> London<br><br> Types of business<br><br> The underwriting process<br><br> Reinsurance<br><br> Dispute resolution<br><br> Regulatory developments<br><br> The future<br><br> <b>21 Insurance -- Lloyd's of London </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Lloyd's explained<br><br> History<br><br> Capital support<br><br> Chain of security<br><br> Past problems<br><br> Recent developments<br><br> <b>22 Personal finance </b><br><br> Introduction<br><br> Financial advice<br><br> Property<br><br> Life policies and pensions<br><br> Savings<br><br> Complaints and compensation<br><br> The future</p>

Edition details

• Publisher: Kogan Page
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0749442433
• ISBN 13: 9780749442439
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 288