This course will be taught entirely online via Zoom.
A one-semester course which will cover selected, practical topics concerning Wall Street's regulatory, economic and political environmnet. We will focus on the nature of investment products, their use and the regulatory structure surrounding them. We will discuss how some misused these products and the impact that has had on the economy. Finally we will look at the government responses to the economy and the success/failure thereof. This class will pull handout materials from articles in major publications, real-time news stories and personal experience. Given the fluid nature of the economy, new information will likely become available during the course and provide timely discussion topics. Therefore, we may veer from the syllabus topics.
The teaching technique will not be a lecture style, but rather a highly participatory Socratic method in which case study, situation analysis and student interaction will be at the core. The instructor will provoke the students and encourage their thoughtful response to the problems and issues so presented. Each student will present on a topic of his/her choice, and the class will have the opportunity to develop their own skills in the areas of: team building, presentation skills, critical thinking, problem diagnosis and problem solving. Class participation and attendance will count towards the final grade. Quizzes may also count towards grading if given.
Students may not earn credit for both, Alt Invest: Lack of Reg/Bailout and Wall Street Regulation.
Textbooks ( * denotes required )
The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine
*
Michael Lewis
When Genius Failed: The Rise and Fall of Long-Term Capital Management
*
Roger Lowenstein
The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable
*
Young, Daniel J. 