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

Traders - Episode 1x03 - Bad Is Good

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". It is one of a handful of investment banking focused dramas, and is credible enough to be interesting and somewhat informative, but most of all, entertaining.

Season 1, Episode 3: Cedric is offered a plea bargain by the prosecution. Doubting that the prosecution's case is strong, he rejects it. At the end of the episode, Sally figures out that the securities commission made an illegal search and seizure in obtaining evidence on her father and the case against him is dropped. The firm decides to restrict trading in Navadyne, a GPS company, while Marty has a large short position. Rather than face serious and potentially unlimited losses as the stock rises, Marty defies orders and covers the short position anyway. Donald informs Adam that the British rail offer does not have a market out clause, meaning that the price is guaranteed by Gardner Ross. As the price of British rail drops, the firm loses money. Adam later punches a hole in the wall of his office when he finds out.

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/05/traders-episode-1x03-bad-is-good.html

How Algorithms Shape Our World

This is a TED talk: Kevin Slavin argues that we're living in a world designed for -- and increasingly controlled by -- algorithms. In this riveting talk from TEDGlobal, he shows how these complex computer programs determine: espionage tactics, stock prices, movie scripts, and architecture. And he warns that we are writing code we can't understand, with implications we can't control.

This is a fascinating talk that really simply and interestingly presents a series of issues around the rise of the algorithms. In finance the markets are increasingly being dominated by computer traders; be they execution modules, tracker and intel modules, pure arb, or even quant trader systems with little to no human intervention. If you work in the markets you need to understand this trend, even if you don't it's very interesting. See also: Quants: The Alchemists of Wall Street, Trillion Dollar Bet (the Midas Formula), Wall Street - The Speed Traders, and The Flash Crash

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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/05/how-algorithms-shape-our-world.html

Wall Street Warriors S02E06

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. This episode is from the second series of the hit Wall Street Warriors franchise.

Sleepless nights, second thoughts and all-time highs. Impulsive markets create a chaotic trading day for Jess while Jim and Lance enjoy the good times as their stocks climb high. After a torrential introduction to the New York trading game, Laeticia gracefully bows out to try her luck in Paris.


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Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/05/wall-street-warriors-s02e06.html

Trading Academy - Episode 6: The Final

This is the final of the series, where the last three traders go head to head to see who will become the best trader - and of course which trader will pick up the 100k prize. Much of the final in the series focuses on analysing the individual traders as they stand before the expert judges; who has had the best performance? who has mastered their trading psychology? who has the most sustainable trading style? and of course ultimately - who will be named the best trader? The final in the series provides a fine completion to the 6-part series in which novice traders compete and learn to become expert traders. Watch the traders in action and learn from others. See also: Episode 1 (meet the candidates), Episode 2 (FTSE Fundamentals), Episode 3 (Global Indices), Episode 4 (Stocks and Shares), Episode 5 (Trading FX) and Million Dollar Traders (a similar apprentice-style trading competition where the aim is to train a successful hedge fund manager). Be sure to add your comments below.

.Trade currencies, commodities, and stocks at eToro
Finance Documentaries: http://www.financedocumentaries.com/2013/05/trading-academy-episode-6-final.html