Derivatives: A Twenty-First Century Understanding

52 Pages Posted: 16 Apr 2011 Last revised: 11 Jul 2013

See all articles by Timothy E. Lynch

Timothy E. Lynch

University of Missouri at Kansas City - School of Law

Date Written: 2011

Abstract

Derivatives are commonly defined as some variation of the following: a financial instrument whose value is derived from the performance of a secondary source such as an underlying bond, commodity or index. But this definition is both over-inclusive and under-inclusive. Thus, not surprisingly, derivatives are largely misunderstood, including by many policy makers, regulators and legal analysts. It is important for interested parties such as policy makers to understand derivatives, because the types and uses of derivatives have exploded in the last few decades, and because these financial instruments can provide both social benefits and cause social harms. This Article presents a framework for understanding modern derivatives by identifying the characteristics all derivatives share.

All derivatives are contracts between two counterparties in which the payoffs to and from each counterparty depend on the outcome of one or more extrinsic, future, uncertain event or metric and in which each counterparty expects such outcome to be opposite to that expected by the other counterparty. The framework presented in this Article will facilitate the development of more rational and comprehensive derivatives regulations, including (i) those required under the recently enacted Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (the Dodd-Frank Act) and (ii) those addressing the particular risks associated with “purely speculative derivatives,” (those in which neither party is hedging a pre-existing risk).

Keywords: derivatives, finance, financial derivatives, sub prime, financial crisis, purely speculative derivatives, gambling, insurance, credit default swaps, options, futures, homogenous expectations, Dodd-Frank Act, Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, CFTC, Mortgage-backed securities

Suggested Citation

Lynch, Timothy E., Derivatives: A Twenty-First Century Understanding (2011). Loyola University Chicago Law Journal, Vol. 43, 2011, Indiana Legal Studies Research Paper No. 187, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1785634 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1785634

Timothy E. Lynch (Contact Author)

University of Missouri at Kansas City - School of Law ( email )

5100 Rockhill Road
Kansas City, MO 64110-2499
United States

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