In this four-hour version of "The Ascent of Money," historian and author Niall Ferguson explains the financial history of the world, exploring how our complex system of global finance evolved over the centuries, how money has shaped the course of human affairs and how the mechanics of this economic system work to create seemingly unlimited wealth-or catastrophic loss. Ferguson travels the globe toe explain the very origins of the financial world we know today-credit, stocks, bonds, insurance and real estate. In Italy, we learn how the Medicis transformed the sin of usury into the common practice of charging interest, while in Amsterdam, we examine the first publicly traded company, the Dutch East India Company. Ferguson introduces us to the 19th-century Scottish ministers who created life insurance and shows us the limits of modern insurance in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. And in New York, he asks financial wizard George Soros to explain short-selling derivatives, a concept Soros introduced to the stock market. Through this revealing history, we learn the economic fundamentals that underlie subprime mortgages and credit default swaps and gain an understanding of how the Chinese economy may soon dominate the world.

Money, money, money -- The origins of credit -- Credit default -- Safe as houses -- Securitization -- The joint stock company -- Enron -- Bonds & options -- Derivatives -- The quants -- A win-win situation -- Chimerica.