Monday, December 7, 2015

More Money Than God

Over several decades, the hedge fund industry has taken the financial sector by storm. In More Money Than God, Sebastian Mallaby presents some of the more interesting events in the history of hedge funds.

Starting from the very first hedge fund, the reader is taken on a whirlwind tour of some dramatic moments in hedge fund history. In particular, the author goes into some events that you might not have heard of, like the characters involved in the formation of the first hedge funds and how they took advantage of market inefficiencies to rake in huge profits. But there is also a lot of focus on some of the famous events that you likely have heard of, like the LTCM blow-up and the Rajaratnam insider trading scandals.

What surprised me is how many successful funds rely on chart reading and technical analysis. But I'm not convinced it's anything more than survivorship bias. As per Warren Buffett's essay The SuperInvestors of Graham and Doddsville, these may be the proverbial monkeys flipping coins. But who knows.

I found some stories fascinating while I couldn't wait to get through others. But if you enjoy following hedge funds, and are interested in history, you will love this book. Enjoy!

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