Ascent of Money » Video

The Ascent of Money Episode 4: Planet Finance

Webmaster — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:58:52 +0000

In the final episode of four-part THE ASCENT OF MONEY series, Niall Ferguson chronicles the spread of good — and bad — financial practices across the globe, the meteoric rise of the American real estate market, and the consequences of the subprime mortgage fiasco.

(View full post to see video)

The Ascent of Money Episode 3: Risky Business

Webmaster — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 15:27:12 +0000

In “Risky Business,” episode three of the four-part THE ASCENT OF MONEY, economist and historian Niall Ferguson examines the roots of the insurance industry in Europe; how disasters like Hurricane Katrina expose problems in risk management; how countries like Japan and Chile manage risk for their citizens; and the great rewards that can be accumulated through risk with hedge funds.

(View full post to see video)

The Ascent of Money Episode 2: Bonds of War

Webmaster — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 17:31:14 +0000

Niall Ferguson on John Law and his Louisiana territory Ponzi scheme; bond markets support warfare in Europe; globalization accelerates with the economic invasion of the Far East.

(View full post to see video)

The Ascent of Money Episode 1: From Bullion to Bubbles

Webmaster — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 17:30:01 +0000

In the first episode of the four-hour series THE ASCENT OF MONEY, economist and historian Niall Ferguson documents the roots of money and finance in the conquest of the Americas, from the Incan empire to the Louisiana territory.

(View full post to see video)

Watch the two-hour THE ASCENT OF MONEY

Webmaster — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 17:28:14 +0000

In THE ASCENT OF MONEY, Niall Ferguson traces the evolution of money and demonstrates that financial history is the essential back-story behind all history. [MYPLAYLIST=1]

Watch a preview of the four-hour documentary THE ASCENT OF MONEY

Webmaster — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 14:46:22 +0000

In the four-hour version of THE ASCENT OF MONEY, historian and author Niall Ferguson seeks to explain the financial history of the world, exploring how our complex system of global finance evolved over the centuries, how money has shaped the course of human affairs and how the mechanics of this economic system work to create seemingly unlimited wealth—or catastrophic loss.

Ferguson travels the globe to explain the very origins of the financial world we know today—credit, stocks, bonds, insurance and real estate. In Italy, we learn how the Medicis transformed the sin of usury into the common practice of charging interest while in Amsterdam, we examine the first publicly traded company. Ferguson introduces us to the 19th-century Scottish ministers who created life insurance and shows the limits of modern insurance in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. And in New York, financial wizard George Soros explains short-selling derivartives, a concept he introduced to the stock market.

Through this history, viewers learn economic fundamentals that inform the meanings of subprime mortgages and credit default swaps and an understanding how the Chinese economy has risen to dominate the world.