Q 01/05

Which scientist, then Master of the Royal Mint, lost at least £10,000 in the South Sea Bubble of 1720?

A) Edmond Halley

B) Christopher Wren

C) Isaac Newton

D) Hans Sloane

Answer · why

C) Isaac Newton

Isaac Newton owned nearly £22,000 of South Sea stock as late as 1722, two years after the crash, and his total losses may have passed £20,000.

Q 02/05

Which commodity's US futures price fell below zero in April 2020, meaning sellers paid buyers to take it?

A) Crude oil

B) Natural gas

C) Iron ore

D) Soybeans

Answer · why

A) Crude oil

Crude oil for May delivery sank to about minus $37 a barrel on 20 April 2020. Lockdowns had crushed demand and the storage tanks at Cushing, Oklahoma,...

Q 03/05

In investing, which animal lends its name to a market that has fallen 20% or more from a recent peak?

A) Bull

B) Bear

C) Wolf

D) Hawk

Answer · why

B) Bear

Bear markets start at a 20% decline, while a smaller slide of 10% to 20% is only classed as a correction.

Q 04/05

Which force did Benjamin Franklin harness by leaving Boston and Philadelphia £1,000 each for 200 years?

A) Land speculation

B) Currency arbitrage

C) Simple interest

D) Compound interest

Answer · why

D) Compound interest

Compound interest swelled the two gifts to almost $5 million in Boston and more than $2 million in Philadelphia by 1990. Part of the Boston money foun...

Q 05/05

Which eight-block stretch of Manhattan, running from Broadway to the East River, is shorthand for American finance?

A) Wall Street

B) Broad Street

C) Pearl Street

D) Nassau Street

Answer · why

A) Wall Street

Wall Street follows the line of a real city wall that stood from 1653 to 1699. Dutch colonists put up the first palisade because they feared an overla...