Derivatives disclosure calls mount

Warren Buffett’s stinging critique of the derivatives business in March represents the latest call for more derivatives disclosure. But despite some notable moves in this direction, most financial institutions remain stubbornly opaque. Christopher Jeffery reports

Warren Buffett, the renowned US billionaire investor, issued a broadside at the derivatives industry last month by describing the instruments as “time bombs” and “financial weapons of mass destruction”. His views strongly contradict those of Alan Greenspan, chairman of the US Federal Reserve, who again last month defended the role of derivatives as powerful hedging tools that have made the world’s financial markets safer. But calls for more derivatives disclosure are unlikely to