EPOKA UNIVERSITY
FACULTY OF ECONOMICS AND ADMINISTRATIVE SCIENCES
DEPARTMENT OF BANKING AND FINANCE
COURSE SYLLABUS
2023-2024 ACADEMIC YEAR
COURSE INFORMATIONCourse Title: FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS AND MARKETS |
| Code | Course Type | Regular Semester | Theory | Practice | Lab | Credits | ECTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BAF 321 | B | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| Academic staff member responsible for the design of the course syllabus (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature) | NA |
| Main Course Lecturer (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature) and Office Hours: | Dr. Armanda Tola atola@epoka.edu.al , By appointment |
| Second Course Lecturer(s) (name, surname, academic title/scientific degree, email address and signature) and Office Hours: | NA |
| Teaching Assistant(s) and Office Hours: | NA |
| Language: | English |
| Compulsory/Elective: | Compulsory |
| Study program: (the study for which this course is offered) | Bachelor in Banking and Finance (3 years) |
| Classroom and Meeting Time: | Fridays, 08.40 |
| Code of Ethics: |
Code of Ethics of EPOKA University Regulation of EPOKA University "On Student Discipline" |
| Attendance Requirement: | 75% |
| Course Description: | This course is about the financial institutions, markets, and instruments that compose today's global financial markets and the risks associated with them. Students will gain a thorough understanding of how financial institutions are managed, how funds are raised, how financial instruments are priced, how risks are managed, and why financial institutions and markets are prone to failure. |
| Course Objectives: | This course is intended to help you understand the role of financial institutions and markets play in the business environment that you will face in the future. It also helps you to develop a series of applications of principles from finance and economics that explore the connection between financial markets, financial institutions and the economy. On the financial markets side, we will learn the term structure of interest rates, stocks, principals of derivatives, and currencies. On the institutions side, we will learn commercial banks, investment banks, insurance companies, mutual funds, the Federal Reserve Systems and their role of in the economy |
|
BASIC CONCEPTS OF THE COURSE
|
| 1 | Financial system |
| 2 | Interest rate |
| 3 | Intermediaries |
| 4 | Capital market |
| 5 | Bond market |
| 6 | Mutual funds |
| 7 | Banks |
| 8 | Insurance companies |
| 9 | Risk |
| 10 | Exchange rate |
|
COURSE OUTLINE
|
| Week | Topics |
| 1 | Introduction & Syllabus |
| 2 | Ch. 1 - Why study financial markets and Institutions & Ch. 2 - Overview of the financial system; Why study financial markets? Why study financial institutions? Function and Overview of the financial markets; Structure of financial markets: Function of financial intermediaries (page 41-76) |
| 3 | Ch. 3 - What Do Interest Rates Mean and What Is Their Role in Valuation? Measuring interest rates: Distinction between real and nominal interest rates; Distinction between interest rates and returns. (page 77- 104) |
| 4 | Ch. 4 - Why Do Interest Rates Change?: Determinants of asset demand; Supply and demand in the bond market; Changes in Equilibrium Interest Rates |
| 5 | Ch. 5 - Risk and Term Structure: Risk Structure of interest rates: Term Structure of interest rates (page 107-128) |
| 6 | Ch. 7 - Why Do Financial Institutions Exist?: Transaction Costs; Asymmetric Information; Moral Hazard (175-205) |
| 7 | Review for the Midterm |
| 8 | Midterm |
| 9 | Ch. 11 - Money Market: The Money Markets Defined; Why do need money markets? The Purpose of the Money Markets. (page 285-307) |
| 10 | Ch. 12 - Bond Market; Purpose of the Capital Market; Capital Market Participants (page 308-332) |
| 11 | Ch. 13 - Stock Market; Investing in Stocks; Computing the Price of Common Stock (333-353) |
| 12 | Ch. 15 - The foreign exchange market (page 375-395) |
| 13 | Ch. 21 - Insurance and Pension Funds, Insurance Companies: Fundamentals of insurance: Types of Insurance and Pensions (540-569) |
| 14 | Project presentations & Review for the Final Exam |
| Prerequisite(s): | |
| Textbook(s): | Financial Markets and Institutions ~ Mishkin & Eakins (10-th edition) |
| Additional Literature: | |
| Laboratory Work: | |
| Computer Usage: | |
| Others: | No |
|
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES
|
| 1 | To discuss theories that underneath the term structure of interest rates |
| 2 | To discuss efficient market hypothesis related to stock pricing |
| 3 | To understand a stylized bank’s balance sheet and discuss how risks are managed in banks |
| 4 | To discuss facts of the insurance business, mutual funds and investment banks |
| 5 | To know how currency value is determined the short run and long run |
|
COURSE CONTRIBUTION TO... PROGRAM COMPETENCIES
(Blank : no contribution, 1: least contribution ... 5: highest contribution) |
| No | Program Competencies | Cont. |
| Bachelor in Banking and Finance (3 years) Program | ||
| 1 | The students gain the ability to look at the problems of daily life from a broader perspective with an increased awareness of the importance of moral/ethical considerations and professional integrity in the workplace. | 5 |
| 2 | They develop their knowledge and understanding of banking and finance including concepts, theories, and analytical tools that serve both in national and international markets. | 5 |
| 3 | They gain an understanding of the role of financial management in business firms and the essentials of corporate finance and further develop their knowledge in the field. | 4 |
| 4 | They are able to apply valuation models to estimate the price of different financial assets, measure risk and describe the risk-return tradeoff. | 5 |
| 5 | They are provided with the knowledge and understanding of the regulatory framework and functioning of banking system and central banking as well as international banking system. | 4 |
| 6 | They are able to understand and use fundamental economic theories and tools to solve economic problems in banking and financial services industry. | 3 |
| 7 | They have the ability to develop and utilize accounting, financial and economic data as well as other information to solve different business problems by making use of basic mathematical and statistical models. | 4 |
| 8 | They are expected to develop their numerical and IT skills as well as knowledge of databases in order to address the significant development in the delivery and use of financial services known as FinTech. | 3 |
| 9 | They develop their ability to think critically, do research, analyze, interpret, draw independent conclusions, and communicate effectively, both individually and as part of a team. | 4 |
| 10 | They are provided with opportunities to acquire the necessary skills and competencies to develop professionalism in the banking and financial services industry or to move on to further study within the discipline. | 4 |
|
COURSE EVALUATION METHOD
|
| Method | Quantity | Percentage |
| Midterm Exam(s) |
1
|
35
|
| Project |
1
|
20
|
| Final Exam |
1
|
35
|
| Attendance |
10
|
|
| Total Percent: | 100% |
|
ECTS (ALLOCATED BASED ON STUDENT WORKLOAD)
|
| Activities | Quantity | Duration(Hours) | Total Workload(Hours) |
| Course Duration (Including the exam week: 16x Total course hours) | 16 | 3 | 48 |
| Hours for off-the-classroom study (Pre-study, practice) | 16 | 1 | 16 |
| Mid-terms | 1 | 20 | 20 |
| Assignments | 2 | 8 | 16 |
| Final examination | 1 | 25 | 25 |
| Other | 0 | ||
|
Total Work Load:
|
125 | ||
|
Total Work Load/25(h):
|
5 | ||
|
ECTS Credit of the Course:
|
5 | ||
|
CONCLUDING REMARKS BY THE COURSE LECTURER
|
|
'Financial Markets and Institutions' encourages students to understand the connection between the theoretical concepts and their real-world applications. By enhancing students’ analytical abilities and concrete problem-solving skills, this course prepares for successful careers in the financial services industry or successful interactions with financial institutions, whatever their jobs will be. |