“But everybody is doing it.” Denver Board of Education and Synthetic Fixed Rate Swaps

As I noted in Friday’s (8/6/10) front page NY Times article attached, the Denver Board of Education was another issuer of a complex derivative deal who took on risks and wasn’t prepared for a downturn. Can risks be better known and managed? One help would be if the advisors weren’t also on the other side of the transaction. But equally important to remember is that, in the long...

The Swaps That Swallowed Your Town

Here is a NYT article by top financial journalist, Gretchen Morgenson: difficult topic, written in easy to understand manner, raises important issues, surprise ending. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/business/07gret.html