Diploma in Hedge Funds via Online Distance Learning

Introduction to Financial Services

The Financial Service Sector; The Role of the Financial Service Industry Today; Banks & Financial Service Institutions; Services Offered; Defining a Bank; Types of Banks; Non-Bank Financial Terms; Trends Within the Financial Services Industry; Trends Affecting the Financial Service Industry; Characteristics of a Financial Service Provider; Financial Services Regulation; Reasons for Government Regulation; Aims of Regulation; Professional Bodies; Codes of Practices; Financial Regulatory Authorities by Country;

Introduction to Hedge Funds

Introduction to Hedge Funds; Defining Hedge Funds; Hedge Funds and Mutual Funds; Relative Returns; Absolute Returns; Hedge Funds & Liquidity; Arbitrage Strategies; Event-Driven Strategies; Directional Strategies; Higher Returns and Bear Markets; Hedge Funds & Risk; Funds of Hedge Funds;

Structure of Hedge Funds

Organisational Structure; General and Limited Partners; Fee Structure; Management & Incentive Fee; Term Structure; Subscriptions and Redemptions; Lock-Ups; Service Providers; Board of Directors; Sponsors; Custodians/ Trustees; Introduction to Investment Structures; Single and Multi-Manager Funds; Master-Feeder Fund; Mirror Funds; Umbrella Funds; Side Pockets;

Financial Law, Regulations & Compliance

Financial Regulation; Aims of Regulation; Regulation of Banks; Regulation of Listed Companies; Regulation of the Stock Exchange; Regulation of Investments; Regulation of Anti-Money Laundering; Principles of Bank Regulations; Components of Bank Regulation; International Law; International Banking Regulations; The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision; Basel III; Basel Capital Accord; Compliance; Principles in Compliance;

Hedge Fund Strategies

Tolls Used by Hedge Funds; Buying & Selling; Equity Hedge; Buying on a Margin; Short Selling & Securities Lending; Derivatives; Leverage; Financial Leverage; Construction Leverage; Instrument Leverage; Investment Approaches & Introduction to Hedge Fund Strategies; Introduction to Merger Arbitrage; Types of Mergers & Acquisitions; Horizontal Merger; Vertical Merger; Co-Generic Merger; Conglomerate Merger; Cash Merger; Stock Swap Merger; Leverage Buyouts; Spin Offs; Risk Management; Volatility Risk; Commodity Risk; Event Risk; Tail Risk; Convertible Arbitrage; Credit Spreads; Implied Volatility; Fixed-Income Arbitrage; Yield Curve Arbitrage; Basis Trading; Capital Structure Arbitrage; Hedging Techniques; Types of Securities; Collateralized Debt Obligation; Mortgage Backed Securities; Pass Through Securities;

Risk Characteristics of Hedge Funds

Specific associated hedge fund risks; Risk management; measuring risk; Risk adjusted performance measures; Applying effective risk management strategies to offshore funds; Importance of effective fund administration; Effects of adding hedge funds to traditional portfolios;

Measuring Returns & Performance

Introduction to measuring returns; Associated difficulties; Measuring net asset values; Equalization; crystallization; Multiple share classes; The free-ride syndrome; Onshore versus offshore funds; Equalization factor; Calculating return; The Sharpe ratio; The Treynor ratio; Jensen alpha; Downside risk; Hedge fund databases; Indices; Benchmarks;

Hedge Fund Investing

Introduction to hedge fund investing; The benefits of hedge funds; Portfolio construction; Asset Allocation And Amount; Static Versus Dynamic Allocations; GIGO Syndrome; Hedge Fund Options; Objectives; Qualitative And Quantitative Analysis; Funds Of Hedge Funds; Advantages Of Funds Of Funds; Disadvantages Of Funds Of Funds; Introduction To Structured Products On Hedge Funds; A Growing Area In The Financial Services Industry; Flexibility In Portfolio Construction; Constant Proportion Portfolio Insurance; Return Swaps; Call Options; Capital Protected Notes; Enhancing Return And Mitigating Risk;

Macroeconomics

Introduction to macroeconomics; Understanding macroeconomics; Principles of economics; How the market works; Gross domestic product; International trade; Open economy; Labour market; Income; expenditure and the circular flow; The consumer price index; Cost of taxation; Employment; Cost of living; The Philips Curve; National income; Supply and demand for goods and services; Money and inflation; The quantity theory of money; Interest rates; Social costs of inflation; Hyperinflation; Exchange rates; Economic fluctuations; Economic growth; Economy in the long run; Accumulation of capital; Population growth; Policies to promote growth; The Solow Model; The business cycle; Aggregate demand and supply; The IS-LM Model; The money market; How fiscal and monetary policies shift the LM Curve; Floating and fixed exchange rates; The Mundell-Fleming Model; Policy debates; Investment; Government policies;

Microeconomics

Introduction to microeconomics; Trade; Trade-offs and government policy; Production and supply’ Elasticities; Individual choice in supply and demand; Production and cost analysis; Competitive markets; Oligopoly and monopolistic competition; Strategic pricing; Uncertainty;

Financial Accounting

Introduction to financial accounting; Users of financial information; Key accounting models; Terminology; Need for financial statements; The balance sheet; Balance sheet layouts; Ratio and the balance sheet; Income statement and layout; Ratios; revenues and trade receivables; Owners’ equity; Cash flow measurement and documentation; Inventories and cost of sales; Tangible and intangible assets; Liabilities; Financial statements and recording transactions; Preparing financial statements; Analyzing and interpreting financial statements; Analysis tools; Auditing;

Marketing Financial Services

Introduction to marketing; Researching the marketplace; Ethics in research and information management; Segmenting and targeting the financial services marketplace; Consumer segments; Business segments; Targeting; positioning; Customer relationship management (CRM); Customer value; Loyalty programmes; Customer satisfaction; Relationships with stakeholders; Relationship with businesses; Internal marketing; Relationship lifecycle;

Spreadsheets (Calc)

Introduction to spreadsheets; Step by step instructions on using the features; Functions and applications for spreadsheets; Customizing the spreadsheet software; Installing the spreadsheet software; Security; Platforms; Operating system compatibility;

Setting Up & Marketing Your Own Consultancy

The Business Plan; Legalities; Setting Up; the Marketing Strategy; Knowing Your Competitors; Promotional Tools;

Presentation Skills

Preparation and Research; Speech Content; Subject Matter and Objectives; Speech Delivery and Variety; Body Language; Eye Contact; Presentation Aids; Management of Locations and Audiences; Presentation Structure;