Economics and Finance

The aims of this module are for the student to become familiar with the fundamental concepts of financial economics, to be equipped for further study in more advanced topics and modules in finance, to learn how to model the behaviour of investors under conditions of uncertainty and how to apply theoretical models in both asset pricing and the evaluation of capital market efficiency.

The aim of this module is to expose students to the microeconomic theory of producer and consumer decision making, and to provide a solid grounding in economic theory and analytical methods employed in subsequent modules.

The aim of this module is to provide students with an understanding of the main models used for macroeconomic policy formulation at the graduate level.

The aim of this module is to provide students with a solid foundation of the econometric techniques and skills that form the basis for the quantitative/econometric modules of their Masters course. The module aims to provide students, through lectures and computer lab workshops, with the practical techniques economists often use to handle, analyse and interpret economic data.

The aims of this module are for students:

• To develop a critical understanding of modern corporate finance theory and its associated concept in an international business context;
• To provide students with a deeper understanding of the key financial decisions made by public limited companies within the international financial environment in which they operate;
• To enable students, through the application of appropriate tools and techniques, to both evaluate and solve complex corporate finance problems.

The aims of this module are to develop the skills which allow the student to:

• Enhance their oral presentation and communication skills for both academic research and employment.
• Develop spoken and written specialist language to suit the high-level communication requirements and style of project proposals and project reports, for both research and employment.
• Conduct critical constructive synthesis of specialist literature.
• Be prepared for subsequent research training and project modules.

The aim of this module is to equip students with the quantitative techniques necessary to conduct empirical work in the area of applied finance and economics.

This module aims to allow students to engage with and study issued related to the mechanics of currency markets, international finance and economics. It aims to use economic principles to examine international monetary arrangements and policy since 1945.

The aims of this module are:

• to develop the skills which will allow the student to apply knowledge and understanding to complex issues in portfolio management.
• to apply tools of analysis to critically evaluate portfolio management issues and performance outcome
• to build on the skills/knowledge from semester one module Principles of Finance (BSP421) and selectively apply these in a portfolio context.

The aims of this module are to:

• build on the pre-requisite module Principles of Finance;
• develop a thorough understanding of the practice of financial management in companies operating in the international environment.
• develop critical reasoning skills in the context of international financial risk management.

The aim of this module is to introduce students to derivative instruments and their use in risk management.

The aim of this module is to equip students with a sound understanding of the concepts, tools and practical experience of using new cryptography based data technologies to disintermediate and promote innovation and competition across financial services. New financial technologies support the use of shared and open data in banking and other financial services. Examples include Open Banking pioneered in the UK, data services on credit scores and other information to support alternative lending platforms, and the use of distributed ledger technologies (DLT or blockchain) to provide a shared permanent data record. These technologies also underpin the rapidly evolving innovations in cryptocurrencies, stablecoins and decentralised finance, seen by many as a disruptive alternative to mainstream finance.

Students will learn, primarily through case analysis, about the supporting technologies and how these allow a supporting 'eco-System¿ of third parties to compete in providing financial services. They will also examine the challenge posed for incumbents competing against challengers and maintaining and innovating banks own systems; and the associated public policy issues concerning financial, privacy and competition regulation. The module will also examine the emerging initiatives in 'crypto¿ and 'decentralised finance defi that are still at an early proof of concept stage but challenging many of the accepted arrangements in traditional finance.

The aim of this module is to develop the capability for independent focused study of an intellectual, business or policy question in economics or finance.
More specifically the module will require:

• Team work on the discussion and choice of a suitable research question and the review of both relevant literature and business or policy context.
• Planning of the project, including identification of the problem, summary of literature and context, and development of appropriate framework of analysis
• The supervised execution of the research project, using relevant theoretical, empirical and institutional tools of economic analysis and appropriate data

The supervision will be from a university staff member or, where agreed with an external organisation, joint supervision between a staff member and an employee of the external organisation.