I’m a bit busy lately so will just put up this video of a guy dancing in one of the currency pits at the old Merc.
Singapore Exchange documentary
To celebrate 30 years as the premier Asian futures exchange, the Singapore Exchange recently released the above video, entitled Founding Futures. The 19 minute documentary provides a great retrospective of SGX’s origins which were initially developed upon the trading pits of SIMEX and is a mix of vintage trading pit footage in addition to commentary from those who built or …
Turkey futures
photo credit: Chicago Tribune archives Back in the late 1940s, turkey futures contracts were traded at the CME as shown above in this clip from 1949 with delivery months in November and December of course. As Billy Ray Valentine also came to learn, “it ain’t cool being no jive turkey so close to Thanksgiving.”
Japanese open outcry seafood trading
image credit: http://www.tsukiji-market.or.jp Over the weekend I was in Tokyo and on Saturday went back to the Tsukiji Fish Market as I hadn’t been there the last few visits after previously always making it a part of each Tokyo trip. For those who haven’t visited, it’s the largest fish market in the world and a bit beyond description for the …
Who’s your daddy?
image credit: wikipedia When it comes to financial futures, it is appropriate to ask who’s your daddy, because two men are credited with paternity. As a product of spending most of my time at the CME, I had always figured that Leo Melamed was widely regarded as the “father of financial futures” but upon reading Dr. Richard Sandor’s book Good …
Comedy webseries of ex-NYMEX pit trader
I was debating on whether to put this up and figure to go for it because it’s ultimately part of the trading pit culture for many. As various pit traders left the trading pit and ultimately the trading industry, a new search for their identity begins yet they always have a hard time letting go of their old identity as …
Ginnie Mae futures launch and it’s legacy
One of the rarest pieces in my collection is an original button celebrating the launch of GNMA “Ginne Mae” bond futures at the CBOT in 1975. The Ginnie Mae contract was the first interest rate futures listing ever traded and established a lot of standards with which financial futures continue to use today. For a complete history behind the efforts …