Something Ventured

Venture capital is one of the most exciting areas of finance and investing because it deals with the starting and creation of businesses. It is the rawest form of investing and economics - putting capital to work to bring ideas into reality. These days the venture capital industry is well advanced and sophisticated, with plenty of funds playing in different areas e.g. early stage, seed capital, expansion capital, pre-IPO funding, and with specialisations e.g. in information technology or biotech, etc. The venture capital industry forms a vital part of an economy. This movie, Something Ventured, offers a unique insight into the rise of venture capital, with some notable examples. So watch and learn about "the single greatest engine of innovation and economic growth in the 20th century" - enjoy!

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/05/something-ventured.html

Wall Street Warriors S02E05

The Wall Street Warriors series follows the careers of a range of Wall Street professionals; across the spectrum of professions e.g. traders, private equity fund managers, investment bankers, stock brokers, and experience levels e.g. rookies, associates, seasoned professionals. This is a very interesting series for those wanting to learn more about what people do on Wall Street (i.e. in the finance industry), and is must see viewing for those interested in a career in finance. It also gives an insight into what their lives are like and how they spend their time, how they think about their careers, etc. This episode is from the second series of the hit Wall Street Warriors franchise.

This ain't easy street …it's Wall Street and Larry can't remember the last time he slept. One of the biggest days in the OJ pit has just arrived and he stands to lose millions if his bets are off. Laetitia is feeling the pressure mount as well. As she approaches her 5th week of training, she contemplates her fate as a day trader and makes some hard decisions.

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/04/wall-street-warriors-s02e05.html

What Happened (Dot Com Boom and Bust)

What Happened? This documentary with the name "What Happened" sets out to show you what happened during the dot com boom of the late 1990s. The documentary was created by Chas Mastin, Michael Lefort, Aldo Bello and a cast of characters in 2001-02. The documentary features interviews with such dot com luminaries as Mark Cuban. Find out what happened from those on the frontlines of the dot com boom. The documentary goes into how Internet entrepreneurs were paid obscene amounts of money for ideas and websites which made no money or didn't even have a hope of making money. Indeed the documentary claims over $20 billion of venture capital was poured into internet companies (the same amount spent on developing the nuclear bomb, and sending a man to space). Of course the investment banks played a major role in the mania - they provided capital, encouraged people to IPO in order to collect the big fees, and hyped up the valuations and prospects to a crowd of investors who were looking for hype. As interesting as this documentary is by itself, it's also an interesting example of a market mania - there will be future market manias so it is worth studying them and learning how to recognise and advantage from them.

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/04/what-happened-dot-com-boom-and-bust.html

Traders - Episode 1x01 - Options

Traders is a Canadian television drama series shot and aired in the late 1990s. It is an interesting and entertaining TV series based on a fictional investment bank "Gardner Ross".

Season 1, Episode 1: Jack Larkin, a Vancouver-based trader with Gardner Ross, shows up at their Toronto office with a plan to move from the trading floor into corporate finance. He meets with Cedric Ross, the eponymous controlling shareholder of Gardner Ross, who initially balks at the idea of making him an investment banker but agrees to further consideration if Jack can land a coveted mining company IPO (Initial Public Offering) for firm. Jack hustles to find the location of a poker game that the owner of Graykirk Mining, Gerald Graykirk, is playing and bribes his way into the game. During the poker game Jack connects with Gerald Graykirk and, while sharing a limousine ride later, convinces him to let Gardiner Ross lead the IPO. Despite an attempt to undermine the deal by Adam, Gardner Ross leads the Graykirk IPO, taking 40% of the $300M issue but endangers its ability to survive to do so. The firm only survives the offering with some deft (and questionable) market maneuvering led by Jack and the head trader, Marty Stephens. As per his deal with Sally, Jack becomes a director of Gardner Ross.

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/04/traders-episode-1x01-options.html

Wall Street Warriors S02E04

Wall Street Warriors follows the careers of a range of Wall Street professionals; across the spectrum of professions and experience levels. This is a very interesting series for those wanting to learn more about what people do on Wall Street (i.e. in the finance industry), and is must see viewing for those interested in a career in finance. This episode is from the second series of the hit Wall Street Warriors franchise.

Markets are beginning to drop and the bullish stockbroker's are feeling the pain. Brett hasn't slept in 24 hours as he prepares for a key investment meeting. Laetitia has a potentially life-changing job interview in Paris with a merchant banker. Larry plays commodities "poker" and enjoys the good-life with his family.

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/04/wall-street-warriors-s02e04.html

Wall Street Warriors S02E03

Wall Street Warriors follows the careers of a range of Wall Street professionals; across the spectrum of professions and experience levels. This is a very interesting series for those wanting to learn more about what people do on Wall Street (i.e. in the finance industry), and is must see viewing for those interested in a career in finance. This episode is from the second series of the hit Wall Street Warriors franchise.

The bears have taken over Wall Street as the sub-prime mess is now in full swing. Nothing seems to be going right for the two stockbrokers who are having hard times in both the markets and on the football field. Meanwhile in Paris, Laetitia, who has been floundering for two weeks, now has to decide between two job offers. In the commodities pit, Larry has to contend with a hurricane that might strike the crops. Brett travels to the Dominican Republic to try to get a wealthy developer to invest in his fund. 


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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/04/wall-street-warriors-s02e03.html

Going Rogue - UK

The systems and processes that banks and financial institutions run are known for being burdensome and bureaucratic. But while compliance has become a growth industry, risk management in financial institutions is perhaps as hard as ever, and as we now know it is not infallible. Indeed the repeated instances of rogue traders over the years shows the risks of workers going rogue in financial institutions. Be it Nick Leeson of Barings Bank, Jerome Kerviel of Societe Generale, or the others; the rogue trader is a risk that investment banks must be ever vigilant of. But others even point to the lead up to the global financial crisis as being tantamount to systemic rogue trading, with poor loans and lax risk management as key drivers of the crisis. Also in the documentary is an ex-Goldman Sachs desk manager who left to pursue a PhD in Neuro Economics - the study of psychology in financial markets. Indeed, it could be that the culture within investment banks encourage risk taking, and has a physiological impact on male traders. See also: Rogue Trader and 25 Million Pounds

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/03/going-rogue-uk.html

When Bankers Were Good

This BBC documentary takes a look at a time when banks and bankers were not under the spell of the "greed is good" mantra. A time where old-timey values such as shame, prudence, and thrift prevented bankers from acting irresponsibly. But the main thing the documentary looks at is the endemic practice of philanthropy, in fact large philanthropic efforts by wealthy bankers lead a trend that resulted in philanthropy becoming the second largest household expense in Britain (of course, before it became institutionalised in the form of the welfare state). The documentary provides an interesting look at the history of banks and bankers in the UK, and probes into the question of whether modern day bankers can learn from the banking and ethical/moral practices of the past to bring in a new age of banking. Can bankers be good again?

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/03/when-bankers-were-good.html

In Defense of the Wall Street Bonus

This short video from One Minute MBA examines the concept of bonuses on Wall Street and considers why  (some) people who work in finance get paid such large bonuses. Essentially bonuses - or performance linked pay - are useful from a corporate governance, business and financial management perspective; but the impact on the wider economy is also very important. While it's easy to understand the frustrations of some people during the financial crisis on why bankers bonuses are so high, the fact is there is a good reason behind it. Of course - if you believe the matter is still open for debate we would love to hear your argument in the comments section below.

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/02/in-defense-of-wall-street-bonus.html

Traders on Wall Street

This documentary looks at the trader culture on Wall Street during the booming stock market of the early 2000's. Randall Lane founded the magazine Trader Monthly which capitalised on the stock market hype. Trader Monthly featured articles on the top 100 earners on Wall Street, the top 30 under 30, how much people had spent on business lunches, and what the best parties had been. This documentary provides an insight into the way of life on Wall Street, the traders, the investment bankers, and the spoils of success. Of course ultimately the stock market boom came to an end and party time was over, at least for a time - the next stock market boom will bring back the hot shot traders and the big bonuses and the lavish parties. Indeed later in the 2000's the credit and leverage boom brought with it another round of mega-bonuses, mega-deals, and excesses both financial and behavioral. For more on the life of Wall Street bankers and traders see: The Fabulous Life of Wall Street Brokers and the Wall Street Warriors series.

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2012/11/traders-on-wall-street.html

Carry On Banking

This BBC Panorama documentary essentially seeks to answer the question: 'have investment bankers and financial institutions learned any lessons from the meltdown or is it back to the old days?' I would say that it's back to the new days, and certainly this documentary shows the desperation to get back to business as usual - albeit with a few tweaks. Bankers in certain parts of the industry i.e. loan origination and structuring, derivative sales, risk management and treasury, and of course leadership at all levels, certainly deserve criticism for the way they acted or failed to act in the lead up to the crisis. But there is a role for finance in facilitating a strong real economy, it is probably a lot plainer and simpler than much of what presently goes on in finance, but finance i.e. borrowing and lending of surplus funds and provision of transaction services are a social/public good. So while financial institutions do need to do some soul searching, the onus is really on the regulators and politicians to help reshape the industry and the incentives. One key problem is that a lot of investment bankers are not actually bankers in the traditional sense, rather they are agents of profiteering - in the old days it was called merchant banking, and 'investment banks' were partnerships, and 'banks' for the most part just borrowed and lent money; maybe that was a better structure? What do you think? - add your comments below...

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2012/10/carry-on-banking.html