Author: Niall Ferguson
In this book, Niall Ferguson takes a look at world history through the lens of finance. The first traces of money in most civilizations is the coin and the earliest form dates back to 600 BC in what is now Turkey. Ferguson spends very little time on physical money and quickly moves on to the concept of money lending and how loans got their official start. Banks soon appear in the narrative and no story about them would be complete without paying homage to the Medici family and the vast political clout they commanded through their banking system. From here on Ferguson attributes most major world events like wars and political reigns to the prevailing financial conditions. Given the importance of money and capital it is not inconceivable that finance has played a big part in the success and ruin of many countries around the world.
The second half of the book is devoted to more modern financial instruments like stocks, bonds, insurance and derivatives. The book was completed in 2008, so Ferguson wasn't able to shed too much light on the most recent financial meltdown caused sub-prime loans and securitization of mortgages.
I didn't find any new or thought provoking ideas in the book. However, I definitely learnt a thing or two about finance.
In this book, Niall Ferguson takes a look at world history through the lens of finance. The first traces of money in most civilizations is the coin and the earliest form dates back to 600 BC in what is now Turkey. Ferguson spends very little time on physical money and quickly moves on to the concept of money lending and how loans got their official start. Banks soon appear in the narrative and no story about them would be complete without paying homage to the Medici family and the vast political clout they commanded through their banking system. From here on Ferguson attributes most major world events like wars and political reigns to the prevailing financial conditions. Given the importance of money and capital it is not inconceivable that finance has played a big part in the success and ruin of many countries around the world.
The second half of the book is devoted to more modern financial instruments like stocks, bonds, insurance and derivatives. The book was completed in 2008, so Ferguson wasn't able to shed too much light on the most recent financial meltdown caused sub-prime loans and securitization of mortgages.
I didn't find any new or thought provoking ideas in the book. However, I definitely learnt a thing or two about finance.
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