SIM 121: Fundamentals of Securities and Investments

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, student should be able to:

1. display understanding of the characteristics of different financial assets such as money market instruments, bonds, and stocks, and how to buy and sell these assets in financial markets;
2. demonstrate skills for evaluating investments assets;
3. develop appreciation of the benefits of diversification of assets;
4. demonstrate skills on how to apply different valuation models to evaluate fixed income securities, stocks, and how to use different derivative securities to manage their investment risks; and
5. exhibit proficiency in valuation techniques.

Course Contents

Money market and Capital market: differences between money market and capital market in terms of instruments, tenor e.t.c. Financial assets: Money market instruments, equities, bonds. Equity markets & structures: Definition of equity, structure of major equity markets, reasons for raising equity finance, reasons for investing in equity, indices, types of equity securities (common stock, preference stock, equity mutual funds shares. The debt market: meaning of debt, characteristics of debt, interest rates, fixed income: corporate and government, structure of fixed income securities, fixed income derivatives, types of bonds, indices.