Financial Crisis

Read an interesting story this morning from a Danish site Comon. The gist of the matter was the current international financial crisis might have been exacerbated by the computer systems and their underlying trading software responsible for much of the trading on the international stock exchanges.
Underpinning the article were references to a BBC article about the matematicians' role in market mayhem. These "quants" (quantitaive analyst) as they are often referred to, are behind the it-logic of many computerized trading systems. Automated trading in conjunction with highly sophisticated financial instruments such as derivatives are to a large extent responsible for the depth and breadth of the current crisis, according to Comon.
Intriguing thought - though I personally find the subprime-crisis in the US a key component in the breakdown. Giving loans to people, who are ill-suited to honour their obligations is a recipe for disaster once the housing-market starts to slide...