On Aug 15, 2009, at 2:37 PM, Bill O'Connor wrote:
> I can't say if it's purposeful obfuscation, but considering the
> "innovation" of exotic instruments, combined with the priesthood of
> econometricians and their mathematical formulae that we're subjected
> to,
> I have my suspicions.
It's marketing too. The profit margin on a new instrument is wider than older ones, because if you get to market first, the customers don't understand how many fees are buried in the price. Then, as other banks imitate the new instrument, competition drives the fees down. So if you've got a new whiz-bang financial gadget to sell, you want it to have asnappy name.
Doug