  Spreadsheets have been with us in their present form for over a quarter of a
century. We have become so used to them that we forget that we are using them
at all. It may serve us well to stand back for a moment to review where, when
and how we use spreadsheets in the financial markets and elsewhere in order to
inform research that may guide their future development. In this article I
bring together the experiences of a number of senior practitioners who have
spent much of their careers working with large spreadsheets that have been and
continue to be used to support major financial transactions and manage large
institutions in the City of London. The author suggests that the City of London
is presently exposed to significant reputational risk through the continued
uncontrolled use of critical spreadsheets in the financial markets and
elsewhere.
