
Key Information
About the content
Financial derivatives are ubiquitous in global capital markets, and those products and the institutions around them continue to evolve at a rapid pace. This course is part of the MicroMasters® Program in Finance, and is designed for students seeking to develop a sophisticated and durable understanding of valuation and hedging methods, and a basic familiarity with major markets and instruments. Tools for quantifying, hedging, and speculating on risk are emphasized.
Topics include forwards, futures and options in the stock, fixed income and commodity markets, exotic options, real options, interest rate and currency swaps, mortgages, credit risk, securitization, the yield curve, duration and convexity.
The knowledge and skills acquired are essential for any well-trained financial practitioner. They will be most useful for those planning a career in sales and trading, portfolio management, commercial banking, investment banking, insurance, as a hedge fund manager, or as an analyst or manager in a public sector financial institution, central bank, or financial regulatory agency. Corporate financial managers, as consumers of complex financial products and hedging instruments, will also benefit from this knowledge. The course is excellent preparation for anyone planning to take the CFA exams.
Prerequisite
- 415.1x Foundations of Modern Finance I
- 415.1x Foundations of Modern Finance II
Syllabus
- Advanced derivatives pricing approaches adaptable to valuing new products
- The many ways to shape risk exposure with derivatives
- Important facts about the world’s largest financial markets
Instructors
Deborah J. Lucas
Sloan Distinguished Professor of Finance
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Egor Matveyev
Executive Director of MicroMasters Program in Finance
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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