derivative products

Derivatives are a type of financial instrument that few of us understand and fewer still fully appreciate, although many of us have invested indirectly in derivatives by purchasing mutual funds or participating in a pension plan whose underlying assets include derivative products. In a way, derivatives are like electricity. Properly used, they can provide great benefit. If they are mishandled or misunderstood, the results can be catastrophic. Derivatives are not inherently "bad". When there is full understanding of these instruments ...