The ability to move markets or shape ideas and policies. The clout to affect the price of a security or the structure of a deal. These are the attributes that define the people who hold sway in the world of finance -- those who make up Bloomberg Markets' second annual 50 Most Influential list.

Thinkers: Austerity proponent Hans-Werner Sinn, an economist at Germany's Ifo Institute, can rally German voters enough to influence Chancellor Angela Merkel. He also has the attention of the citizenry as he insists on tough terms for fiscal miscreants such as Greece.