Page 1 of 12

Swinburne Business School, Faculty of Business and Law

Unit Outline

FIN80004

Capital Markets Semester 1, 2015 (BLOCK MODE)

Please read this Unit Outline carefully. It includes:

PART A Unit summary

PART B Your Unit in more detail

PART C Further information

Page 1 of 12

PART A: Unit Summary

Unit Code(s) FIN80004

Unit Title Capital Markets

Duration One teaching period

Total Contact Hours 36 hours

Requisites:

Pre-requisites Nil

Co-requisites n/a

Concurrent pre-requisites FIN80005

Anti-requisites n/a

Assumed knowledge n/a

Credit Points 12.5 Credit Points

Campus/Location Hawthorn

Mode of Delivery Delivery is in 3 hour evening sessions or 5 hour block delivery sessions. Total student workload is 120 hours.

Assessment Summary

Assignment (Group) 15-20%

Presentation (Individual) 10%-15%

Test (Individual) 20%-25%

Examination (Individual) 50%-60%

Aims

This unit provides students with the skills and expertise to identify the different types of financial institutions who operate in the market, together with the various sources of funds available within capital markets. The unit will also enhance student’s ability to identify a financial problem and critically analyse and interpret financial data. Unit Learning Outcomes 1. Demonstrate advanced knowledge of the structure and functions of financial markets. 2. Critically analyse the mechanisms that operate within the Australian and International capital

and financial markets. 3. Critically analyse choices of financing available to individuals, small business and corporations. 4. Demonstrate advanced knowledge of various financial concepts to the media coverage of

financial issues. 5. Apply problem solving methodology to the operation of equity and debt markets and

demonstrate how conditions and prices are determined in major financial markets. 6. Communicate proficiently in professional practice to a wide variety of audiences and operate as

an effective member of a diverse team.

Page 2 of 12

Generic Skills Outcomes This unit aims to achieve the following in our students:

Teamwork skills Analysis skills Problem solving skills Ability to tackle unfamiliar problems Ability to work independently Ability to consider local and international environments

Content

Introduction to money and financial markets The banking sector and non-bank financial intermediaries Regulation of financial intermediaries Sources of finance - short, medium and long term; international debt markets The share market as a source of equity for corporations Government debt, monetary policy and the payment system Interest rate determination and forecasting Interest rate risk management

Page 3 of 12

PART B: Your Unit in more detail

Unit Improvements

Feedback provided by previous students through the Student Survey has resulted in improvements that have been made to this unit. Recent improvements include:

• Wiki • Listed Company Group Assignment • Interim Progress Report

Unit Teaching Staff

Name Role Campus & Room No.

Phone No.

Email Address Consultation Times

Dr Sarod Khandaker

Convenor and Lecturer

BA 1035 9214-8456

skhandaker@swin.edu.au

By Appointment

Learning and Teaching Structure

Activity Total Hours Hours per Week

(block mode) Teaching Period Weeks

Lectures 18 hours 3 hours Weeks 1 to 6

Tutorials 18 hours 3 hours Weeks 1 to 6

Week by Week Schedule

Teaching Week

Date Beginning Lecture Topic Lecture Topic Readings

1

14th March, 2015

Review of fundamental concepts in finance and accounting

Overview of financial system

The Monetary Authority

Reserve Bank of Australia

Kidwell, Chapter 1

Kidwell, Chapter 2

Kidwell, Chapter 3

2

28th March, 2014

Reserve Bank of Australia

The Level of Interest Rates

Commercial Banking Operations

Kidwell, Chapter 3

Kidwell, Chapter 4

Kidwell, Chapter 14

3

18th April, 2015

Non-Banking Financial Institutions

Bond Price and Interest Rates

Bond Market

Revision for the Midterm Examination

(Chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 13, 14 and 5)

Kidwell, Chapter 15

Kidwell, Chapter 6

Kidwell, Chapter 9

Interim progress Report Presentation and progress discussion

Page 4 of 12

Teaching Week

Date Beginning Lecture Topic Lecture Topic Readings

4

2nd May, 2015

Mid Semester Test (Chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 13, 14 and 5)

Money Markets

Kidwell, Chapter 8

5

16th May, 2015

Equity markets

Investors in Share Markets

Kidwell, Chapter 10

(Final Assignment Submission)

Viney, Chapter 6

6

30th May, 2015

Sustainability and the Financial Sector

Revision

Final presentation

Kidwell, Chapter 19

All topics

Reserve day for Final Presentation

Assessment

a) Assessment Overview

Tasks and Details Individual or Group

Weighting

Unit Learning Outcomes that this assessment task relates to

Assessment Due Date

1. Listed Company Assignment (Submission)

Group 20% All 16th May, 2015 (Class No 5)

2. Presentation and Class Participation

Individual 10% 4 and 5 Interim progress Report

18th April, 2015

Final Presentation:

30th May, 2015 (Class No 6)

3. Test Individual 20% All 2nd May, 2015

4. Examination Individual 50% All Formal Exam Period

NOTE 1:

Specific assessment criteria for each assessment task can be found on the Blackboard site for this Unit. Students must retain all assessed material that contributes to the final result up until such time as the final results are published. Please Note:

No dictionary is permitted in Mid Semester Test and in the Final Examination.

Students can only use simple, non-programmable/ financial calculator (such as SHARP ELS-735) in final examination, lectures/tutorials and class TEST. We strongly recommend students to use financial calculator for this unit.

Programmable calculator (such as TI-83 Plus, TI-30X) will NOT BE ALLOWED in Final examination and/or Class TEST.

Page 5 of 12

NOTE 2: Presentation and Class Participation

2.1. Class participation and Tutorial Discussion [5%]: Assessment details: To gain a high grade, students need to attend tutorials regularly with their weekly tutorial work

completed and be prepared to discuss questions and show their answers on the board if requested. The quality of your answers and contributions in tutorials also matter. It is to your advantage to volunteer and participate actively in tutorial discussion.

The grading criteria are shown in the table below:

Grade Explanation 5 marks

Very regular attendance. Volunteers to answer questions. Contributes to tutorial discussion consistently and actively with insightful comments. Well-prepared to show answers to questions on the board when requested.

4 marks

Regular attendance. Answers questions in class and contributes to tutorial discussions actively. Generally prepared for tutorials.

3 marks

Regular attendance, with some contribution to tutorial discussion and some preparation for tutorials.

2 marks

Fairly consistent attendance, with little contribution to tutorial discussion.

1 marks

Poor attendance, with little or no contribution to tutorial discussion.

2.2. Presentation (individual/group) [5%]: Each group will prepare a short presentation of the Listed Company Assignment to the tutorial

class.

The presentation schedule, which will be decided by your tutor, will be finalized before Week 11 of the Semester. Each team will present to the tutorial group at an appointed time during the last week. It is your group’s responsibility to ensure that you have been allocated a time-slot for the presentation. Please stick to the schedule once it is finalized. If your group fails to show up during the allocated time-slot for any reason, everyone in the group will receive a zero for oral presentation.

Group presentations are designed to encourage collaborative work. All group members must participate in the presentation. In addition, all presenting members must dress in professional manner.

Time allowed for tutorial presentation: 12 minutes. Your tutor and the rest of the class may

ask you questions and give comments at the end of your presentation, and you are expected to respond to them. There will be 3 additional minutes for questions and answers.

Please note that no additional time will be given for the presentation and groups will be

penalised for using additional time. It is your responsibility to ensure that the equipment used for the delivery of your oral

presentation is in working condition. Having hard copy transparencies as a form of back-up is a good idea. You should also save an extra copy of your presentation slides on a CD or USB drive. Students who fail to present during their time-slot as a result of equipment failure or computer crashes will be penalized.

Page 6 of 12

Grade Explanation 5 marks

Accurate and highly relevant content, very clear and succinct presentation. Strongly demonstrates the ability to answer questions convincingly. Highly professional visual aids. Constantly maintains eye contact with the audience and is highly engaging.

4 marks Very clear presentation of the main points using professional visual aids. Communicates very well with the audience and is engaging. Answers questions clearly.

3marks

Generally clear, accurate and relevant points. Engages the audience in general.

2 marks

Satisfactory presentation. Some attempt to engage the audience. There may also be some problems in English expression.

1 marks

Unsatisfactory presentation. Incoherent and generally unclear. No attempt made to communicate with the audience.

b) Minimum requirements to pass this Unit

To pass this unit, you must achieve: 1. must attempt each assessment tasks in order to eligible for the final exam including class

attendance. 2. at least 45% of the possible final marks for each Assessment Component, 3. an aggregate mark for the subject of 50% or more.

If you do not achieve at least 45% of the possible final marks for Each Assessment Component, you will receive a maximum of 44% as your total mark for the unit concerned.

c) Examinations

If the unit you are enrolled in has an official examination, you will be expected to be available for the entire examination period including any Special Exam period. The final exam covers the whole semester’s work. No dictionary is permitted in this examination. Programmable calculator (such as TI-83 Plus, TI-30X) will NOT BE ALLOWED in Final

examination and/or Class TEST. The exam emphasises the application and analysis of the financial principles discussed in

the course. To achieve a high grade on the final exam students needs to be able to explain concepts

clearly and in detail, using recent data to support their answers where relevant.

d) Submission Requirements

Assignments and other assessments must be submitted through the Blackboard assessment submission system (Turnitin).

Please ensure you keep a copy of all assessments that are submitted.

An Assessment Cover Sheet must be submitted with your assignment. The standard Assessment Cover Sheet is available from the Current Students website (see Part C). Please Note: You also need to submit a Hardcopy of the assignment with the appropriate cover sheet to your tutor.

Page 7 of 12

e) Extensions and Late Submission

Late Submissions - Unless an extension has been approved, you cannot submit an assessment after the due date. If this does occur, you will be penalised 10% of the assessments worth for each calendar day the task is late up to a maximum of 5 days. After 5 days a zero result will be recorded.

f) Referencing

To avoid plagiarism, you are required to provide a reference whenever you include information from other sources in your work. Further details regarding plagiarism are available in Section C of this document.

Referencing conventions required for this unit are: Harvard Referencing

Helpful information on referencing can be found at http://www.swinburne.edu.au/lib/studyhelp/harvard-quick-guide.pdf

g) Group-work Guidelines This assignment is undertaken in groups of 2/3 throughout the semester. Each group selects a company listed on the ASX and NYSE and researches on the

financing methods used by the company, and the implications of these financing decisions on the operation of the company.

Every group of students has to present and submit an interim progress report on week 7 (during the tutorial/lecture hour.) For the Saturday student, the Interim Progress Report presentation will be held on 18th April (3rd Class)

The second part of the assignment involves the group in the preparation of a professional final report.

ASSIGNMENT DETAILS:

The final report of your Listed Company Assignment is worth 20%. The following assessment criteria will be used to evaluate the quality of your final report for the Listed Company Assignment:

The Assignment size would be approximately 4000 words (+/- 5%) excluding Endnotes, references and footnotes. Please note that the size of the assignment could be depending on information availability, analysis and types of corporation.

Please use the Harvard style referencing system for the assignment. The referencing should be accurate and updated.

The company assignment should reflect the following things:

a) An introduction b) Background of the company; origins; industry classification; management including

governance issues. c) Investment decisions taken. d) Sources of funds, including reference to markets, instruments and institutions used. e) Uses of funds. Where possible comments on the matching principle could be made. f) Analysis of the sources and uses of funds. * g) Analysis of profit/loss/balance sheet. * h) Share price fluctuations; market capitalisation. i) Competitiveness in the market. j) Findings, Conclusion and Recommendations .

*In selecting accounting ratios you should keep in mind that accountants use a wide variety of ratios in assessing the performance of a company. Some emphasise day to day management issues where others are concerned with the effectiveness of the financial resources they have employed. You should keep in mind that your assignment is about

Page 8 of 12

finance therefore you should emphasise things like return on assets; return on equity; interest and dividends times covered; and EBIT and other like measures.

Required Textbook(s)

Kidwell, D., Brimble, M., Basu, A., Lenten, L., and Thomson, D., 2013, Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, 3rd edition, John Wiley and Sons Australia, Limited.

Recommended Reading Materials

The Library has a large collection of resource materials, both texts and current journals. Listed below are some references that will provide valuable supplementary information to this unit. It is also recommended that you explore other sources to broaden your understanding.

Texts:

Viney, C. and Phillips, O. 2012, McGrath’s Financial Institutions, Instruments, and Markets, 7th edn, McGraw-Hill, Australia

Hunt, B., and Terry, C., 2008, Financial Institutions and Markets, 5th edition, Thomson Australia

Business periodicals and newspapers: Financial Review The Australian

Some useful websites:

Title of Website URL

Finance and Economics related websites

Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) http://www.asx.com.au

ANZ Banking Group Economics and Research http://www.anz.com/corporate/economics-markets-research/

BRW http://www.brw.com.au/

Commsec http://www.comsec.com.au/

Commonwealth Bank Research http://www.research.commbank.com.au/

National Australia Bank Research http://www.wholesale.nabgroup.com

Westpac Banking Corporation Research https://www.westpac.com.au/secure/publish.nsf/Content/PBOI+Research

Australian Financial Review (AFR) http://www.afr.com

Wall Street Journal (WSJ) http://online.wsj.com/public/us

The Financial Times (FT) http://www.ft.com/home/uk

Moneyweek http://www.moneyweek.com

Fortune Magazine http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune

Australian Government websites

Reserve Bank of Australia http://www.rba.gov.au

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) http://www.abs.gov.au

Department of Treasury http://www.treasury.gov.au

Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) http://www.apra.gov.au

Page 9 of 12

Title of Website URL

Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) http://www.asic.gov.au

Other databases

Factiva (covers most Fairfax publications including Business Review Weekly, The Australian Financial Review, and The Age)

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/lib/database/factiva.htm

DatAnalysis http://www.aspecthuntley.com.au/af/dathome?xtm-licensee=dat

Page 10 of 12

PART C: FURTHER INFORMATION For further information and links to resources for the following topics, refer to Swinburne’s Current Students web page http://www.swinburne.edu.au/student/

Student Charter

Please familiarise yourself with Swinburne’s Student Charter. The charter describes what students can reasonably expect from Swinburne in order to enjoy a quality learning experience. As students contribute to their own learning experience and to that of their fellow students, the charter also defines the University's expectations of students.

Student behaviour and wellbeing

Swinburne has a range of policies and procedures that govern how students are expected to conduct themselves throughout the course of their relationship with the University. These include policies on expected standards of behaviour and conduct which cover interaction with fellow students, staff and the wider University community, in addition to following the health and safety requirements in the course of their studies and whilst using University facilities.

All students are expected to familiarise themselves with University regulations, policies and procedures and have an obligation to abide by the expected guidelines. Any student found to be in breach may be subject to relevant disciplinary processes. Some examples of relevant expected behaviours are:

1. Not engaging in student misconduct

2. Ensuring compliance with the University’s Anti-Discrimination, Bullying and Violence and Sexual Harassment requirements

3. Complying with all Swinburne occupational health and safety requirements, including following emergency and evacuation procedures and following instructions given by staff/wardens or emergency response.

In teaching areas, it is expected that students conduct themselves in a manner that is professional and not disruptive to others. In all Swinburne laboratories, there are specific safety procedures which must be followed, such as wearing appropriate footwear and safety equipment, not acting in a manner which is dangerous or disruptive (e.g. playing computer games), and not bringing in food or drink.

Blackboard

You should regularly access the Swinburne Course Management System (Blackboard) available via http://ilearn.swin.edu.au. Blackboard is regularly updated with important Unit information and communications.

Communication

All communication will be via your Swinburne email address. If you access your email through a provider other than Swinburne, then it is your responsibility to ensure that your Swinburne email is redirected to your private email address.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the action or practice of taking and submitting or presenting the thoughts, writings or other work of someone else as though it is your own work. Plagiarism includes any of the following, without full and appropriate acknowledgment to the original source(s):

1. The use of the whole or part of a computer program written by another person; 2. the use, in essays or other assessable work, of the whole or part of a written work from any

source including but not limited to a book, journal, newspaper article, set of lecture notes, current or past student’s work, any other person’s work, a website or database;

3. The paraphrasing of another’s work; 4. The use of musical composition, audio, visual, graphic and photographic models, 5. The use of realia that is objects, artefacts, costumes, models and the like.

Plagiarism also includes the preparation or production and submission or presentation of assignments or other work in conjunction with another person or other people when that work should be your own independent work. This remains plagiarism whether or not it is with the

Page 11 of 12

knowledge or consent of the other person or people. It should be noted that Swinburne encourages its students to talk to staff, fellow students and other people who may be able to contribute to a student’s academic work but that where independent assignment is required, submitted or presented work must be the student’s own.

Enabling plagiarism contributes to plagiarism and therefore will be treated as a form of plagiarism by the University. Enabling plagiarism means allowing or otherwise assisting another student to copy or otherwise plagiarise work by, for example, allowing access to a draft or completed assignment or other work.

Swinburne University uses plagiarism detection software (such as Turnitin) for assignments submitted electronically via Blackboard. Your Convenor will provide further details.

The penalties for plagiarism can be severe ranging from a zero grade for an assessment task through to expulsion from the unit and in the extreme, exclusion from Swinburne. Consequently you need to avoid plagiarism by providing a reference whenever you include information from other sources in your work.

Student support

You should talk to your Unit Convenor or Student Services, for information on academic support services available for Swinburne students.

Special consideration

If your studies have been adversely affected due to serious and unavoidable circumstances outside of your control (e.g. severe illness or unavoidable obligation) you may be able to apply for special consideration (SPC).

Applications for Special Consideration will be submitted via the SPC online tool normally no later than 5.00pm on the third working day after the submission/sitting date for the relevant assessment component.

Special needs

Sometimes students with a disability, a mental health or medical condition or significant carer responsibilities require reasonable adjustments to enable full access to and participation in education. Your special needs can be addressed by Swinburne's Disability Services, who can negotiate and distribute an 'Education Access Plan' that outlines recommendations for university teaching and examination staff. You must notify the University Disability Liaison Officer of your disability or condition within one week after the commencement of a unit of study to allow the University to make reasonable adjustments.

Review of marks

An independent marker reviews all fail grades for major assessment tasks. In addition, a review of assessment is undertaken if your final result is a marginal fail (45-49) or within 2 marks of a grade threshold.

If you are not satisfied with the result of an assessment you can ask the Unit Convenor to review the result. Your request must be made in writing within 10 working days of receiving the result. The Unit Convenor will review your result against the marking guide to determine if your result is appropriate.

If you are dissatisfied with the outcomes of the review you can lodge a formal complaint.

Feedback, complaints and suggestions

In the first instance you may discuss any issues with your Unit Convenor.

If you are dissatisfied with the outcome of the discussions with the Unit Convenor or would prefer not to deal with your Unit Convenor, then you can complete a feedback form.

Advocacy

You are advised to seek advice from the staff at the Swinburne Student Amenities Association (SSAA) if you require assistance with any academic issues.