Financial Statement Analysis 1
This module provides an introduction to key accounting concepts and knowledge. Accounting objectives, conventions and standards, and the rules that govern disclosure are examined. Other topics include ratio and cash flow analysis, analysis of inventories and analysis of long-lived assets.

Financial Statement Analysis 2
This is a continuation of Financial Statement Analysis 1. Topics in this module include analysis of financing liabilities, analysis of off-balance sheet activities and hedging transactions, accounting for pensions and income taxes, and international accounting differences and their effect on financial statements.

Economic Analysis
This module covers the principles of microeconomic and macroeconomic analysis, with particular reference to economic management and the financial markets. Our aim is to learn theories in order to apply them in analysis. Topics in microeconomics include supply and demand, competition and monopoly, externalities and the new IT economy. Topics in macroeconomics includes growth, trade, cycles and the recent developments in the rational expectation theory.

Quantitative Methods and Statistics
This module provides the basic aspects of quantitative analysis, probability theory and data analysis, with special reference to finance. Topics include the time value of money, theory of interest, probability theory, descriptive data analysis, decision trees, estimation and hypothesis testing, and simple statistical analysis such as correlation analysis, regression analysis and time series analysis.

Advanced Corporate Finance
This course aims to provide students with an advanced coverage of Corporate Finance. It answers three issues facing every business corporation: investment, financing/dividend and operational decisions. The course will equip students with conceptual and analytical skills necessary to make both routine and non-routine financial decisions. It will cover advanced topics such as optimal capital structure, IPOs, Mergers & Acquisitions, Corporate Restructuring and Value Creation. Cases will be used to illustrate the concepts and tools introduced in the course.

Fixed Income Analysis
This course focuses on the fixed-income markets and basic analytical tools used in analysing fixed income securities. Features of fixed-income securities and credit rating will be covered in detail. Topics on basic analytical tools include: interest rates and yield-curve mathematics, duration analysis and convexity. Theories on the term structure of interest rates will also be discussed.

Derivatives Analysis
This module introduces the concept of derivative pricing based on the idea of an arbitrage-free market. Basic derivative instruments such as forwards, futures, options, and swaps will be covered. Valuation models for forwards and the Black-Scholes model for options will be studied. The difference between forwards and futures will be discussed. The module contents will also address the hedging issue and the trading issue. From a hedging perspective, option Greeks, interest rate and currency swaps versus exposures, and forward-spot basis risks will be studied. From a trading perspective, arbitrage opportunities, violations of parities such as put-call parity, and other options strategies will be reviewed.

Equity Analysis and Portfolio Management
This module covers basic techniques of valuation and management of securities in a portfolio context. For valuation of stocks, models such as discounted cash flow models, P/E multiples, and alternative-pricing models will be covered. Implication of efficient market theory on fundamental and technical analysis will also be examined. Global and local equity market features will be incorporated to add depth to the module. For portfolio management, concepts of risk and return are analyzed in the context of formal pricing models such as the Capital Asset Pricing Model and the Arbitrage Pricing Theory. Aspects of efficient market theory and anomalies are considered. The concept of portfolio diversification and the construction of optimal portfolios such as mean-variance efficient portfolios are studied. The syllabus extends to the consideration of international diversification and investments where currency risks and interest rate risks need to be evaluated.

Corporate Strategy & Financial Performance
Today’s financial analysts need to appreciate the impact that a strategy-focused organisation will have on the bottom line. This course will concentrate on building strategy maps and the know-how of translating strategy to operational terms. Different corporate strategies will be examined and a model developed to measure the performance of effective strategic planning. This will result in some appreciation of the balanced scorecard and the linking of metrics with goals.

Investment Advisory Service & Wealth Management
Investment advisory service is a part of financial planning for individuals. The course will start with a review of the financial planning process and tools of financial planning, which include liquidity and credit planning. Tax planning, insurance planning, retirement planning and estate planning are key areas for servicing high net worth and high income clients. The course will include the construction of a written financial plan with a focus on recommendation of products offered by private banks and other financial institutions to meet the investment objectives of up-market clients. This elective is recommended for students who are contemplating client relationship and business development roles in the fast-changing financial services industry.

Private Equity and Venture Capital Investing
The elective explores topics and issues in private equity and venture capital investing from both the point of view of the investors as well as the entrepreneurs. The course is suited for those who are interested to pursue a career in the private equity and venture capital industry. It will give an overview of the private equity and venture capital industry in Asia and US and also provides the foundation on general investment terms and structure, equity and debt classes, valuation approaches, due diligence processes and exit/divestment strategies. It will be taught with a combination of case studies and lecture-discussions including visiting entrepreneurs.

Financial Risk Management
This module focuses on risk management in multinational corporations and financial institutions. Module covers major areas such as foreign exchange, money market instruments, Euro-markets exchange, traded instruments versus O-T-C products, derivative products, understanding the corporation's risk exposure, issues in measurement of exposure, risk management in treasury operations and asset/liability management in financial institutions.

Corporate Finance
This course aims to provide students with a basic understanding of Corporate Finance. Students will be exposed to key financial concepts and tools commonly used by managers in making sound financial decisions. These include time value of money, risk-return trade-off analysis and cost of capital. The course also reviews the basic financial activities undertaken by firms to create value for its shareholders. These activities include investing, financing and dividend policy.

Hedge Fund Management
This course will provide an overview and a framework for hedge fund management. Topics will include: hedge fund objectives, institutional features, statistical and econometric concepts, hedge fund strategies, fund of hedge funds, risk management, performance measurement and compensation issues.

Financial Statement Analysis 3
This module builds on and extends the coverage of the earlier module Financial Statement Analysis 1 and 2. Advanced topics in financial statement analysis that include corporate restructuring, accounting for inter-corporate investments, mergers and acquisitions, distress analysis, accounting for global corporations and the use of financial statements as a tool for valuation and forecasting will be covered.

Advanced Quantitative and Economic Analysis
This module builds on and extends the coverage of the earlier modules of Economic Analysis and Quantitative Methods and Statistics. Some advanced topics in analysis of economic data are covered, including multiple regression model, time series and econometric modelling, nonparametric statistics, multivariate analysis. Applications of these techniques in portfolio management, economic forecasting, term structure modelling, asset pricing theories, performance measures and interest rate management will be examined.

Advanced Equity Analysis
This course is the continuation of Equity Analysis. This module examines various advanced equity valuation models introduced to price cyclical bankrupt and private firms. Risk-return relationship and asset pricing models will be introduced. Empirical evidence on asset pricing theories as well as the effect of corporate announcements (e.g. bond rating changes, going private transactions, public and private equity placements) on stock prices will be discussed.

Advanced Fixed Income Analysis
This course is the continuation of Fixed Income Analysis. This module focuses on fixed-income derivatives and risk management. Valuation models on fixed-income securities with embedded options, such as callable and convertible bonds, will be discussed in detail. Issues in securitisation, asset-backed securities and options pricing theory with applications to fixed-income market will be covered.

Advanced Derivatives Analysis
This module builds on and extends the coverage of the basic module Derivatives Analysis. The basic concepts will be reinforced with some degree of modelling skills including the building of simple PDEs using Ito's lemma. Some ideas of extension of Black-Scholes and other adaptations to different commodities and financial instruments will be provided. More sophisticated theories such as forwards versus futures pricing, and interest rate swaps versus interest rate futures will be covered. Interest rate derivatives such as caps, floors, and others will be studied. The use of derivatives in risk management will also be analysed.

Advanced Portfolio Management
This module builds on and extends Portfolio Management. The module covers the complete investment process from constructing investment objectives and policies to broad class asset allocation, portfolio selection, revisions, monitoring, and performance measurement and attribution. Practical issues relating to investment management philosophy and style, and active and passive management will be discussed. Advanced techniques in portfolio construction involving the use of single index, multi-factor and Arbitrage Pricing Theory models are studied.

Financial Modeling
Managers very often need to make important quick decisions.  These are usually difficult to justify without a good model and thorough analysis.  This course focuses on helping students learn to use spreadsheets as effective tools in financial modeling.  Through practices in class, students will be able to develop on their own spreadsheet models, covering representative topics from corporate finance to investments planning and analysis, to analyze trade-offs and sensitivities, and understand implications of uncertainties and risks.  The key emphasis of this course is on acquiring the necessary programming skills and developing the art of modeling, more than learning about available financial models.

Bank Risk Management
Banks in many countries are embracing a new approach to risk management.  Commonly termed Basel II, it requires banks to move away from unvalidated human judgments to testable and verifiable empirical methods in assessing risk, especially credit risk.  Countries that cannot meet with the deadline may have a few years of grace period but would eventually have to adopt this new approach.  Basel II prescribes specific definitions and parameters that banks have to use for risk measurement.  The module will cover these plus the immense challenges that they pose to banks.style, and active and passive management will be discussed. Advanced techniques in portfolio construction involving the use of single index, multi-factor and Arbitrage Pricing Theory models are studied.

Corporate Risk Management
This course examines techniques and issues in corporate credit risk analysis. The various economic, business and financial factors that affect corporate credit quality will be discussed, as will the evaluation of a corporation’s debt servicing ability and likelihood of default. Topics will include: business and financial risk analysis, debt covenants, seniority and security structures, parental support, structural subordination, credit scoring and credit rating models, recovery prospects, credit analysis of multi-business conglomerates, and structured finance. Practical illustrations and case studies will be used throughout the course. Prior knowledge of fundamental financial accounting and statement analysis will be assumed.

Structured Products
This course will cover the use of structured products by fund managers for investment. These products include convertible bonds, mortgaged-backed securities, option-embedded bonds, equity-linked notes, dual currency options, reverse floaters and similar forms of innovative financial instruments. Participants will obtain a good understanding of the risk and return of these products, and their use in portfolio management.