At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- discuss the recent evolution of the asset and wealth management industry
- describe theoretical foundations and advancements in asset allocation models
- compare asset management products in terms of return, risk and style
- evaluate the performance of asset managers
- identify the impact of exchange risk hedging
- comment current trends in the asset management industry (the growth of ETFs, the ESG integration in AM products, fintech applications in AM)
Although there are no formal requirements for this course, you should be familiar with basic concepts of theoretical finance such as, for example, the Capital Asset Pricing Model and market efficiency. Students should also be familiar with the fundamentals of statistics and multiple regression analysis.
Traditional lectures
Guest speaker's talks
Case study discussion
Group assignments
The evaluation will be based:
- 70% on the outcome of a final written exam (4 or 5 open questions, 60 minutes)
- 30% on the outcome of: class participation and case studies discussion (5%), course assignments (10%) and final workgroup (15%).
Students wishing to take the 6 credits exam can skip final workgroup AND, at their choice,
the module on ETFs or the module on Personal Finance. Their mark will be fully based on the written exam result.
Non-attending students (9 credits only) will be required to prepare the full materials (all book chapters and elearning) and 1 or 2 extra exam questions.
From traditional asset allocation models to subsequent innovations. The behavioral finance view. Performance measurement. The role of alternative asset classes. ESG factors and strategies.International diversification and exchange rate risk. The case of hedge funds. Active management vs passive management. The growing importance of ETF market. The peculiarities of private banking and the role of large asset owners. Fintech applications in asset management. In the final part of the course there will be a series of workshops on portfolio construction and management in collaboration with a leading industry player. Students will be assigned a group work.
