They were the leaders of the world’s three most important central banks: Ben Bernanke of the U.S. Federal Reserve, Mervyn King of the Bank of England, and Jean-Claude Trichet of the European Central Bank. Over the next five years, they and their fellow central bankers deployed trillions of dollars, pounds and euros to contain the waves of panic that threatened to bring down the global financial system, moving on a scale and with a speed that had no precedent. Neil Irwin’s The Alchemists is a gripping account of the most intense exercise in economic crisis management we’ve ever seen, a poker game in which the stakes have run into the trillions of dollars. The book begins in, of all places, Stockholm, Sweden, in the seventeenth century, where central banking had its rocky birth, and then progresses through a brisk but dazzling tutorial on how the central banker came to exert such vast influence over our world, from its troubled beginnings to the Age of Greenspan, bringing the reader into the present with a marvelous handle on how these figures and institutions became what they are – the possessors of extraordinary power over our collective fate.  What they chose to do with those powers is the heart of the story Irwin tells. Irwin covered the Fed and other central banks from the earliest days of the crisis for the Washington Post, enjoying privileged access to leading central bankers and people close to them. His account, based on reporting that took place in 27 cities in 11 countries, is the holistic, truly global story of the central bankers’ role in the world economy we have been missing.  It is a landmark reckoning with central bankers and their power, with the great financial crisis of our time, and with the history of the relationship between capitalism and the state. Definitive, revelatory, and riveting, The Alchemists shows us where money comes from—and where it may well be going.

    The qualifying exam is the CWE or Common Written Exam that tests people on Quantitative Aptitude, English, Reasoning Ability, Computer Knowledge and Banking Awareness. The questions are in the form of multiple choice questions and the marking scheme is such that incorrect answers attract negative marking.With this in mind, Arihant Experts has released Success Master IBPS Institute of Banking Personnel Selections CWE Common Written Examination Bank PO Probationary Officers to help test-takers prepare for the national exam. It contains descriptive yet simple chapter-wise analyses of topics and concepts. Explanations are provided in such a way that the uninitiated do not find it difficult. These have been put together by a qualified and expert panel keeping in mind the pattern of questions, format and competitiveness of the exam.The book provides plenty of exercises on the five areas on which the exam tests people. This has been done by splitting the book into five chapters with each chapter dedicated solely to a particular area. Solutions have been provided to all questions.The book also provides a chapter on banking awareness which has topics like General Awareness, Self Observation Test, and Descriptive Test. The book lists model questions of the kind commonly found in the exam.Chapters are filled with tricks and shortcuts to help test-takers solve problems quickly. These aim at enhancing the test-takers speed and performance in the exam. Inspite of its comprehensive nature, the book does not deviate from the IBPS bank PO/MT exam syllabus and refrains from providing unnecessary information to confuse users. The book also provides 3 self observation tests to assess the users knowledge and preparation. Also given is the IBPS Bank PO/MT 2012 question paper with solutions.

    Rather, this is a book intended to explain in a straight-forward manner the way private banking interests - which have no loyalty to anything other than to greed - create credit and money as profit-making commodities which has driven individuals, businesses and entire states to ruin through debt. As importantly, The Banking Swindle examines the many communities and states that have rejected the fraudulent banking system, and sometimes had to fight to do so, and brought prosperity where there was destitution, by taking issuing money and credit for their legitimate purpose: as mere tokens for the exchange of goods and work, debt-free. The Banking Swindle is unique also in regard to its coming from the 'Right', and redefining the 'Right' with precision, after decades of having been misinterpreted by both the Left and Classical Liberals as being synonymous, especially in the English-speaking world, with Free Market Capitalism, which it is not, and never has been. Indeed, as The Banking Swindle shows, drawing on such thinkers as Oswald Spengler from the Right, and Karl Marx himself from the Left, Free Market Capitalism is subversive and anti-conservative. The Banking Swindle shows that historically it has been the Right that has fought Usury, that it was Rightist parties that offered clear policies on overthrowing the power of the bankers. The Right has largely forgotten this background, at the very time when policies are needed to address the world's Number One issue: Debt.

    The Global Credit Crisis during 2008/2009 has shown that sound understanding of underlying credit risk is crucial. If credit freezes, almost every activity in the economy is affected. The best way to utilize credit and get results is to understand credit risk.Advanced Credit Risk Analysis and Management helps the reader to understand the various nuances of credit risk. It discusses various techniques to measure, analyze and manage credit risk for both lenders and borrowers. The book begins by defining what credit is and its advantages and disadvantages, the causes of credit risk, a brief historical overview of credit risk analysis and the strategic importance of credit risk in institutions that rely on claims or debtors. The book then details various techniques to study the entity level credit risks, including portfolio level credit risks.Authored by a credit expert with two decades of experience in corporate finance and corporate credit risk, the book discusses the macroeconomic, industry and financial analysis for the study of credit risk. It covers credit risk grading and explains concepts including PD, EAD and LGD. It also highlights the distinction with equity risks and touches on credit risk pricing and the importance of credit risk in Basel Accords I, II and III. The two most common credit risks, project finance credit risk and working capital credit risk, are covered in detail with illustrations. The role of diversification and credit derivatives in credit portfolio management is considered. It also reflects on how the credit crisis develops in an economy by referring to the bubble formation. The book links with the 2008/2009 credit crisis and carries out an interesting discussion on how the credit crisis may have been avoided by following the fundamentals or principles of credit risk analysis and management.The book is essential for both lenders and borrowers. Containing case studies adapted from real life examples and exercises, this important text is practical, topical and challenging. It is useful for a wide spectrum of academics and practitioners in credit risk and anyone interested in commercial and corporate credit and related products.

    Accounts of elders or priests who guarded the forbidden knowledge of ancient peoples. Prominent men, meeting in secret, who directed the course of civilization are recorded in the writings of all people.The oldest is the Brotherhood of the Snake, also called the Brotherhood of the Dragon, and it still exists under many different names. It is clear that religion has always played a significant role in the course of these organizations. Communication with a higher source, often divine, is a familiar claim in all but a few.The secrets of these groups are thought to be so profound that only a chosen, well-educated few are able to understand and use them. These men use their special knowledge for the benefit of all mankind. At least that is what they claim. How are we to know, since their knowledge and actions have been secret? Fortunately, some of it has become public knowledge.I found it intriguing that in most, if not all, primitive tribal societies all of the adults are members. They are usually separated into male and female groups. The male usually dominates the culture. Surprisingly, this exactly resembles many civilized secret societies. This can only mean that the society is working not against established authority, but for it. In fact, could be said to actually be the established authority. This would tend to remove the validity of any argument that all secret associations are dedicated to the "destruction of properly constituted authority." This can only apply, of course, where the secret society makes up the majority or entirety of any people which it affects. Only a very few fall into this category.Secret societies in fact mirror many facets of ordinary life. There is always an exclusivity of membership, with the resultant importance attached to being or becoming a member. This is found in all human endeavors, even those which are not secret, such as football teams or country clubs. This exclusivity of membership is actually one of the secret societies' most powerful weapons. There is the use of signs, passwords and other tools. These have always performed valuable functions in man's organizations everywhere. The stated reason, almost always different from the real reason, for the societies' existence is important...".