Synopsis

For many, investment is a subject that is mysterious and quite intimidating. This unfortunate outcome is no coincidence. Many in finance like to speak in a different language. The language is intimidating to outsiders. But if you want to progress in your career, you’ll need to engage deeply in investment lingo —it is the language of business, the lifeblood of the economy, and increasingly a dominant force in capitalism. So neglecting the language used in investing and hoping to survive in the industry is increasingly difficult as the client becomes more sophisticated.

This course aims to provide you with the most central foundation of investing so that you will never find finance intimidating again. Mastering these six numbers won’t make you a financial engineer—there are likely more than enough of those. Instead, internalizing these six concepts will provide the foundation for addressing financial issues with confidence and gain trust with your client.

Through these six concepts, this workshop provides the foundation towards understanding the financial markets

This short course will help participants ask the right questions to guide them in their investment decisions. It is not a blueprint for beating the market but a common sense approach for understanding the conceptual basics of investing.

Course Outline:

The six concepts that will be covered include:

  1.  Return
  2.  Risk
  3.  Diversification 
  4.  Valuation
  5. Leverage
  6. Expense




Instructor(s)

Mr. Puah Soon Lim, CFA

Mr. Puah Soon Lim, CFA has a Bachelor degree in Business Administration majoring in Finance from the National University of Singapore. Mr. Puah has more than 23 years of experience in the investment and financial industry. For the past 7 years, he has participated actively in investment education and delivered on a series of popular workshops, particularly on value investing. He is currently an Associate Director of an independent financial advisory firm. He works with both individual and institutional investors to provide customised advice on optimal asset allocation. His extensive experience and thorough knowledge in wealth management enables him to break apart complex concepts into easy-to-understand components for the individual investors.

In his spare time, Mr. Puah is a keen endurance athlete and has completed several marathons and international triathlons.  He is married with two school-going children. 

Course curriculum

  • 1
    Introduction
    • Introduction & Disclaimer
    • Content Introduction
  • 2
    Section A - Return
    • Return - Introduction
    • Return - The Risk-free Return
    • The Risk Premium
    • Return Math
    • The Math of Loss
    • The Tyranny of Return
    • Case Study - Is it really risk-free? (5 mins)
    • Case Study - Suggested Answer (5 mins)
    • Summary Page (5 mins)
    • Assessment (8 mins)
  • 3
    Section B - Risk
    • Risk - Volatility as a Risk Measure
    • Risk - The Mismeasurement of Risk
    • Risk - Hidden Risk
    • Risk - Value at Risk
    • Looking at Return and Risk
    • Case study - Making sense of Volatility (5 mins)
    • Case Study - Suggested Answer (5 mins)
    • Summary Page (5 mins)
    • Assessment (8 mins)
  • 4
    Section C - Diversification
    • Diversification - It may not be intuitive
    • Diversification - Low Correlation
    • Question On Allocation
    • Does Two Negatives Produce One Positive
    • Case Study - Which fund has a higher correlation? (5 mins)
    • Case Study - Suggested Answer (5 mins)
    • Diversification - Correlation Coefficient
    • Summary Page (5 mins)
    • Assessment (8 mins)
  • 5
    Section D - Valuation
    • Valuation - The Concept of Hurdle Rate
    • Valuation - Approaches - Intrinsic
    • Valuation - Approaches - Relative
    • Valuation - Approaches - Asset-based - Acquisition value
    • Valuation - Approaches - Asset-based-Liquidation
    • Case Discussion: Valuation Metrics for stock selection (5 mins)
    • Case Discussion - Suggested Answer (5 mins)
    • Summary Page (5 mins)
    • Assessment (8 mins)
  • 6
    Section E - Leverage
    • Introduction to Leverage
    • Understanding The Carry Trade
    • Case Discussion: Debt is soaring but interest rates remain low, what is happening? (5 mins)
    • Case Discussion - Suggested Answer (5 mins)
    • Summary Page (5 mins)
    • Assessment (8 mins)
  • 7
    Section F - Understanding Expenses
    • Understanding Cost - Introduction
    • Types of Investment Expenses
    • The Impact of Expenses On Investment Return
    • Case study - What other expense should one take note of? (5 mins)
    • Case Study - Suggested Answer (5 mins)
    • Summary Page (5 mins)
    • Assessment (8 mins)
  • 8
    Conclusion
    • Conclusion

Fee: Contact Us (No GST)

90 days' unrestricted use