Top 5 Articles from March
1. Three Questions about the Facebook IPO
Unless you have been living under a rock, you must be aware that Facebook, the “darling” of social media, is about to go public. But before investors slake their thirst for Facebook shares, market participants should consider three questions.
2. Rethinking the Risk-Free Rate, Exploding a Fundamental Assumption
There is no such thing as a risk-free rate of return, just as there is no such thing as our world without action. Yet, the concept of a bedrock expected rate of return is a good one in need of a better description that is more reflective of reality.
3. Five Perspectives on China’s “Investment Bubble”
Vikram Mansharamani used five different perspectives on China’s economy to argue that China’s investment-driven boom will be the next great financial bubble to burst, predicting significant drops in industrial commodity prices, commodity producers’ profitability, and even the currencies of the major commodity-producing countries.
4. An Overview of Alternatives to Credit Ratings
In the wake of the Great Recession, many alternatives to the traditional credit-rating agencies are being considered. Here is an overview.
5. Book Review: Red-Blooded Risk
No one who reads this book will ever again regard risk management as a necessary but unproductive appendage of the financial industry. Other authors have chronicled how quantitative finance influenced investment management, but Aaron Brown has made a compelling case for a far more profound economic impact.
