Equity and Index Options Explained

W.A. Beagles graduated in economics in 1984, before starting his City career with Lloyds Bank as an FX trader and going on to help establish the bank’s presence on the LIFFE trading floor. In 1986, Bill joined AOT, a specialist option trading firm, for whom he traded a range of option products on LIFFE and LTOM in London, the MATIF in Paris, the EOE in Amsterdam and the electronic DTB (fore-runner of Eurex) in Germany. Following in the footsteps of many successful traders before him, Bill “went local” in 1994, making markets in the FTSE 100 Index option on LIFFE. When the open outcry trading floor closed in 2000, Bill had the honour of ringing the closing bell for the final time.

Joining up with Simon Hart and Andy Swaine, two long term friends and fellow traders, Bill then set up K2 London, a trading company that combines day-to-day derivatives trading with fund management, education and consultancy. Since 2000, Bill has provided specialised education and consulting services to a wide range of institutions including LIFFE and the LSE in London and to a range of government agencies and major companies across the globe.

Bill’s combination of current market knowledge and educational experience allows him to present the complex subject of options in a clear and intuitive fashion.