13 Years Later, Warren Buffett Still Says Derivatives Are 'WMDs'

Warren Buffett Still Says Derivatives Are 'Weapons Of Mass Destruction' via Tony Boyd, AFR

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Thirteen years after describing derivatives as "weapons of mass destruction" Warren Buffett has reaffirmed his view that they pose a threat to the global economy and financial markets.

In an interview with Chanticleer this week, Warren Buffett said that "at some point they are likely to cause big trouble".

"Derivatives, lend themselves to huge amounts of speculation," he said.

"One thing about stocks is that with a settlement date of three business days from purchase you have a very short period of time between the commitment and when you settle up.