Fisherman and the Rhinoceros: How International Finance Shapes Everyday Life »

ERIC BRIYS is a managing director at Deutsche Bank where he heads the Insurance Strategies Group. He has worked previously for Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers. Prior to joining the investment banking world he was a Professor of Finance at the HEC School of Management. He has published six books on finance and economics and more than thirty scientific articles.
FRANCOIS DE VARENNE is vice-president at Deutsche Bank where he covers European insurance and reinsurance companies. He has worked previously for Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers. Prior to joining the investment banking world he was head of financial and economics affairs at the French Federation of Insurance Companies. An engineer, an actuary and a PhD in finance by training he has published two books and more than ten scientific articles.

A thoroughly entertaining explanation of how modern high finance benefits everybody. Is modern global finance, with its rarefied financial instruments, its ability to shuttle billions of dollars back and forth across the globe with the click of a mouse, and its philosophy of unrestrained free market economy, good for the economy-the real economy that most of us rely upon for our livelihoods? According to the authors of this highly entertaining book, the answer is a resounding "Yes!" Using the device of three amusing parables, the authors bring this complex and hotly debated issue down to earth for business and financial professionals.

In a narrative packed with pithy anecdotes taken from literature, history, and the
financial press, they explain how the markets effectively insulate business from financial risk, thus freeing entrepreneurs to concentrate their talents on building the real economy. Fascinating and instructive case studies, including Laker Airbus, Long-Term Capital Management, and Barings.