Capital Ideas Evolving (PBC)

"A lot has happened in the financial markets since 1992, when Peter Bernstein wrote his seminal Capital Ideas. Happily, Peter has taken up his facile pen again to describe these changes, a virtual revolution in the practice of investing that relies heavily on complex mathematics, derivatives, hedging, and hyperactive trading. This fine and eminently readable book is unlikely to be surpassed as the definitive chronicle of a truly historic era."
--John C. Bogle, founder of The Vanguard Group and author, The Little Book of Common Sense Investing
"Just as Dante could not have understood or survived the perils of the Inferno without Virgil to guide him, investors today need Peter Bernstein to help find their way across dark and shifting ground. No one alive understands Wall Street's intellectual history better, and that makes Bernstein our best and wisest guide to the future. He is the only person who could have written this book; thank goodness he did."
--Jason Zweig, Investing Columnist, Money magazine
"Another must-read from Peter Bernstein! This well-written and thought-provoking book provides valuable insights on how key finance theories have evolved from their ivory tower formulation to profitable application by portfolio managers. This book will certainly be read with keen interest by, and undoubtedly influence, a wide range of participants in international finance."
--Dr. Mohamed A. El-Erian, President and CEO of Harvard Management Company, Deputy Treasurer of Harvard University, and member of the faculty of the Harvard Business School
"Reading Capital Ideas Evolving is an experience not to be missed. Peter Bernstein's knowledge of the principal characters-the giants in the development of investment theory and practice-brings this subject to life."
--Linda B. Strumpf, Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, The Ford Foundation
"With great clarity, Peter Bernstein introduces us to the insights of investment giants, and explains how they transformed financial theory into portfolio practice. This is not just a tale of money and models; it is a fascinating and contemporary story about people and the power of their ideas."
--Elroy Dimson, BGI Professor of Investment Management, London Business School
"Capital Ideas Evolving provides us with a unique appreciation for the pervasive impact that the theory of modern finance has had on the development of our capital markets. Peter Bernstein once again has produced a masterpiece that is must reading for practitioners, educators and students of finance."
--Andr? F. Perold, Professor of Finance, Harvard Business School

Capital Ideas Evolving describes how the core concepts of modern finance developed between 1952 and 1973 transformed the investment world in the face of unrelenting attacks from critics and tumultuous economic events.  Modern financial theory now drives the management of investment portfolios and global trading activities. The core idea that all investments reflect a trade-off between risk and expected returns is widely accepted and is the starting point of investment decision-making. Similarly, the idea that the market cant be beat is now conventional wisdom, even among those who claim to possess an expertise to outperform market averages.  In addition, modern investment theory has spawned new investment and risk management structures: most notably, hedge funds and derivatives, both of which have contributed greatly to the globalization of capital.  But while modern investment theory is inextricably imbedded in the operations of the financial world, the real-world applications in the past 15 years have produced unanticipated and sometimes unwelcome results.  The overarching assumption of investor rationality has been proven untenable, given high market volatility, bubbles and crashes, and persistent distortions in asset valuations.  Into this breach, the theory of behavioral finance has emerged, which attempts to explain the occasional irrationality of markets through analysis of investor actions.  Nonetheless, Bernstein clearly states that the revolution ignited by the small group of scholars has forever changed the financial and investment world, and developments of recent years have done nothing to discredit the central tenets of modern financial theory.  Capital Ideas Evolving brings to life the individuals, ideas, and events which have revolutionized finance and investment and led to a new age of unprecedented capital mobility.