Credit-default swaps are an unfairly maligned derivative
They are back in the headlines. That is not entirely bad news
Vultures, rats and maggots are often the focus of disgust, less because of anything for which they can be blamed, and more because of the conditions with which they are associated. Death, disease and squalor carry a stigma that is hard to shake. Something similar is true of credit-default swaps, financial instruments that make headlines during market turmoil and economic misery.
This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “The importance of maggots”
Finance & economics October 15th 2022
- Emerging markets look unusually resilient
- After China’s party congress, is there hope of better policymaking?
- As Europe falls into recession, Russia climbs out
- Rates are rising at unprecedented speed. When will they bite?
- Three economists win the Nobel for their work on bank runs
- Who will survive the fintech bloodbath?
- Credit-default swaps are an unfairly maligned derivative
- Energy shocks can have perverse consequences
More from Finance & economics
China meets its official growth target. Not everyone is convinced
For one thing, 2024 saw the second-weakest rise in nominal GDP since the 1970s
Ethiopia gets a stockmarket. Now it just needs some firms to list
The country is no longer the most populous without a bourse
Are big cities overrated?
New economic research suggests so
Why catastrophe bonds are failing to cover disaster damage
The innovative form of insurance is reaching its limits
“The Traitors”, a reality TV show, offers a useful economics lesson
It is a finite, sequential, incomplete information game
Will Donald Trump unleash Wall Street?
Bankers have plenty of reason to be hopeful