Dave -- there's a lot to what you've said above -- it requires reflection to process. I have a couple of reactions, but take them as dialogue, not disagreement.

1) I agree re mavericks, very nicely said. That's why mavericks need help from talented liasons to achieve good results.

2) I think the critique of derivatives is off base. All market activity is trading on the failure of others. All business is. The problem with derivatives is that they unlock the potential for catastrophic failures because of their scale and complexity. Regulation to tame both scale and complexity is an appropriate function of "the social compact". Moralistic neutering of normal business "betting" is not.

3) Knowing yourself is key. Knowing your own story raises issues to me. One's "story" is constantly emerging, and is a matter of perspective as well. Too sure a focus on a particular storyline can blind one to what's really going on, or what can, or should.

4) Acting slowly seems problematic to me too, although often a good idea. But often just not feasible... often it's necessary to take small steps instead, or to act and then observe, so that one learns and develops at a pace necessary to operate in a complex and competitive universe. The tortoise is sometimes left behind.

Peter

Thanks for sharing this excellent extract from your foreward, Dave. It eloquently encapsulates so much of what I have been trying to say to various clients. I will be sharing it far and wide. And ordering a copy of Bob's book, of course !

Dave - I'm not sure where you get some of your facts from regarding Singapore derivatives trading. If I read Global Investor Magazine 2008, I read an article about derivatives markets in Singapore.

(November 2008).
The attraction of Singapore's derivatives market is understandable. The Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX) has become one of the leading derivatives exchange in Asia, attracting investors from around the world with products aimed at hedging, investment and risk transfer purposes.

It says later: "In the third quarter, a record 17,369,505 contracts were traded, presenting a 17% increase over the 14,831,554 contracts in the second quarter. In September alone, there was a 68% increase on contracts traded compared to September 2007, and the SGX yen-denominated SGX Nikkei 225 Index Futures contract reached a new monthly record of 3,064,898 traded contracts.".

Did the ban come in after this? I can't find any articles about it - if it did (eg. Search Google news for 'derivatives/trading/ban/Singapore' results in 0 (zero) articles. I look forward to your response.

I was reporting a conversation with several senior civil servants in Singapore David. I will check it out and see if there is any qualification. If they didn't then they should have if you see what I mean!

Peter - I recommend the book, I had some of the same concerns when I saw the headings, but reading made the context clear

Dave

One of my concerns is that this kind of story then gets retold on the conference circuit - because it fits in with a particular line of reasoning - and is a distortion of the truth. I touched on this aspect of narrative (ie the veracity of what is in a 'story') in a previous comment. I feel it is important. Again I make a plea for a forum format on this web site - to enable fuller discussions on threads!

Cheers, David.