Bulls & Bears

So I had my first Series 7 class last night and jeeeez! - my head is still spinning. Here's the short version of what was covered: the rights of shareholders, the liquidation hierarchy, common stock voting rights, preemptive rights, the difference between warrants and rights, stock splits (whole and fractional), types of preferred stock, American Depository Receipts (and GDR's), how the primary market is structured, types of underwriting and spreads, the Securities Act of 1933, the timeline for full registration, new issue regulations, NASD rule 2790 and equity IPO's, which securities and transactions are exempt from rule 2790, Regulation D, Rule 144 and 144A, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, insider regulation, and the regulations regarding fair disclosure.

Oooooo-Kaaay? So anyway, it was a lot to take in and I find that I'm still digesting it. Most everybody looked kind of shell-shocked walking out, so I fit right in, and perhaps that was the point - to get it through to us that this exam is no joke. I'm sitting for my exam on October 13th, which was as early as I could schedule it (it's a 6 hour, two part exam). I have 4 chapters to read for Thursday covering the exchange market, the over-the-counter market and customer accounts - good subway reading.

Not much else to report - I had a nice quiet holiday weekend. I got together with friends a couple of times and got a lot of sleep. Fortunately, I am not teaching this week, and even more fortunately, I have the kids tonight - more on that tomorrow.