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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Quite an insightful little blue book, March 26, 2002
This review is from: Structured Equity Derivatives: The Definitive Guide to Exotic Options and Structured Notes (Hardcover)
I had to read this book as a requirement for a postgraduate level finance course which I took this year. I found it extremely insightful and easy to understand. I believe (keeping fingers crossed!) that there are a lot of highly technical books out there for those with several years of experience in structured derivatives and the so called rocket scientists. But what about those who don't fall under this category? Where should those new to this field ( structured derivatives) or students who want to grasp a better understanding of derivatives after reading books such a Hull's , start with? This is exactly where Dr. Kat's book comes to picture, with a claim to offer an through understanding of structured derivatives, nothing more or less. Reading criticism such as the one from "reader from Seattle" (below) is surprising to me, specially when he says: "I bought this book with high hopes, but I found little knowledge in it that I couldn't get from my own colleagues. And now, where is the value of reading a long book if all your colleagues know it from the word go?" Well, let me tell you something, it's for those who are not surrounded by "colleagues who know it from the word go"! And, there are a lot of us out there. I bought it with little hopes as a text book for my course, but I found insightful knowledge of derivatives in it, which I couldn't get from a lot of my teachers let alone my colleagues! I highly recommend it to all those who have had an introductory course on derivatives covering books such as Hull's, and want to progress further. Suggestion: Check your colleagues first, if they know the subject, drop the book!! : )
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hey, wait a minute........!, March 21, 2002
This review is from: Structured Equity Derivatives: The Definitive Guide to Exotic Options and Structured Notes (Hardcover)
After reading the comments of another anonymous 'reader from Seattle'(although I suspect him to have a house in New York as well) it suddenly struck me that maybe a bit more expectations management is necessary here. The goal of Structured Equity Derivatives is not to improve the state-of-the-art and tell experienced professionals how they can further improve their act (although I am almost flattered by the fact that our reader from Seattle still found something that he could not get from his own collegues). Instead, the goal of the book is to offer students and relative newcomers a quick but at the same time thorough way to come to grips with this complex area. The sparse use of mathematics and ample use of graphs are all aimed towards that goal. People that are only interested in the mathematics of derivatives or in mind-boggling new nonsense structures should not buy this book (or be allowed to write reviews on it).
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Unique Approach, October 28, 2001
This review is from: Structured Equity Derivatives: The Definitive Guide to Exotic Options and Structured Notes (Hardcover)
I view and judge this book from a Structured Equity Derivatives Sales point of view. First the chapters: 1) the General Framework 2) Stocks and Market Indices 3) Special Contract Features 4) Index Linked Cash Flows 5) Pricing and Hedging 6) Improving Efficiency 7) Risk Management 8) Reducing the Cost of Buying Options 9) Equity Linked Notes 10) Raising the Participation Rate 11) Market Timing and Non-Bullish Views 12) Digital and Coupon Bearing Notes 13) Equity Linked Savings First and foremost, this book is unique in the sense that it concentrates on payoff formulas, rather than mathematical formulas. Congratulation! The author has an excellent theoretical AND practical knowledge of the topic. One recognises the later in the phylosophical notes. What I do not understand though, are the chapters 5,6, or 7 to the overall topic. Sorry, but I sometimes had the feeling the products alone could not fill the book (even though including the questioned chapters, the book is still pretty slim). Nevertheless, the authors comments and analysise and many standard products are very well explained and graphically supported. It's 100% a book for the beginner and semi-pro in the world of structuring/selling/using equity derivatives. The pro might miss some new "hot" structures used today (like worst-of constructions or selection mechanism), but then, no book will ever be that up to date...
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