Curriculum (Investment Adviser Level 1)
MODULE 1: PERSONAL FINANCIAL PLANNING
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO PERSONAL FINANCIAL PLANNING
- Understand the concept of Financial Planning
- Understand the need for financial planning
- Scope of financial planning
- Concept of asset, liabilities and net worth
- Financial Planning process
- Financial advisory and execution
CHAPTER 2: TIME VALUE OF MONEY
- Time Value of Money
- Calculate the following
CHAPTER 3: EVALUATING THE FINANCIAL POSITION OF CLIENTS
- Importance of cash flow management in personal finance
- Preparing Household Budget
- Cash inflows and outflows
- Budgeting and forecasting
- Monitoring budgets and provision for savings
- Creating a personal Balance Sheet and net-worth
- Creating a budget and savings plan
- Contingency Planning
- Evaluation of financial position of clients
CHAPTER 4: DEBT MANAGEMENT AND LOANS
- The purpose or need of debt
- Role and impact of debt in cash flow management
- Leverage and Debt Counselling
- Calculate the debt servicing requirements
- Responsible Borrowing
- Secured and Unsecured loans
- Terms related to loans
- Types of borrowing
- Understand loan calculations
- Loan restructuring
- Repayment schedules with varying interest rates
- Criteria to evaluate loans
- Opting for change in EMI or change in tenure for interest rate changes
- Invest the money or pay off outstanding loan
- Strategies to reduce debt faster
MODULE 2: INDIAN FINANCIAL MARKETS
CHAPTER 5: INTRODUCTION TO THE INDIAN FINANCIAL MARKETS
- The Indian Economy
- The Indian Financial Markets
- Regulators of Financial Markets
- Structure of Financial Markets in India
CHAPTER 6: SECURITIES MARKET SEGMENTS
- Nature and Definition of Primary Markets
- Role and Function of the Secondary Market
- Corporate Actions
MODULE 3: INVESTMENT PRODUCTS
CHAPTER 7: INTRODUCTION TO INVESTMENT
- Types of investment
- Equity
- Fixed Income
- Commodities
- Real Estate
- Structured products
- Distressed Securities
- Other investment opportunities
- Channels for making investments
CHAPTER 8: INVESTING IN STOCKS
- Equity as an investment
- Diversification of risk through equity instruments – Cross sectional versus time series 136
- Risks of equity investments
- Overview of Equity Market
- 5Equity research and stock selection
- Combining Relative Valuation And Discounted Cash Flow Models
- Technical Analysis
- Qualitative evaluation of stocks
CHAPTER 9: INVESTING IN FIXED INCOME SECURITIES
- Debt market and its need in financing structure of Corporates and Government
- Bond market ecosystem
- Risks associated with fixed income securities
- Pricing of Bond
- Traditional Yield Measures
- Concept of Yield Curve
- Concept of Duration
- Introduction to Money Market
- Introduction to Government Debt Market
- Introduction to Corporate Debt Market
- Small Saving Instruments
CHAPTER 10: UNDERSTANDING DERIVATIVES
- Basics of Derivatives
- Underlying concepts in derivatives
- Types of derivative products
- Structure of derivative markets
- Purpose of Derivatives
- Benefits, Costs and risks of Derivatives
- Equity, Currency and Commodity derivatives
- Derivative markets, products and strategies
MODULE 4: INVESTMENT THROUGH MANAGED PORTFOLIO
CHAPTER 11: MUTUAL FUNDS
- Meaning and features of Mutual Fund
- Concepts and Terms Related to Mutual Funds
- Features of and differences between Open-ended schemes, Close-ended schemes,
- Interval schemes and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)
- Regulatory Framework of Mutual Funds
- Mutual Fund Products
- Mutual Fund Investment Options
- Triggers in Mutual Fund Investment
- Process associated with Investment in Mutual Funds
- Systematic Transactions
- Investment Modes
CHAPTER 12: PORTFOLIO MANAGER
- Overview of portfolio managers in India
- Types of portfolio management services
- Structure of PMS in India
- Registration requirements of a Portfolio Manager
- Responsibilities of a Portfolio Manager
- Cost, expenses and fees of investing in PMS
- Direct access facility offered by PMS
- SEBI requirements on performance disclosure
CHAPTER 13: OVERVIEW OF ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENT FUNDS (AIFs)
- Introduction to Alternative Investments
- Evolution and Growth of AIFs in India
- SEBI requirements on AIF
- Categories of AIFs and their comparison
- Types of AIFs
- Role of Alternative Investments in Portfolio Management
MODULE 5: PORTFOLIO CONSTRUCTION, PERFORMANCE MONITORING AND EVALUATION
CHAPTER 14: INTRODUCTION TO MODERN PORTFOLIO THEORY
- Framework for constructing portfolios – modern portfolio theory
- Assumptions of the theory
- Definition of risk averse, risk seeking and risk neutral investor
- Calculation of expected rate of return for individual security
- Graphical presentation of portfolio risk/return of two securities
- The concept of Efficient Frontier
- Portfolio Optimization process
- Estimation issues
CHAPTER 15: PORTFOLIO CONSTRUCTION PROCESS
- Importance of Asset Allocation Decision
- Understanding correlation across asset classes and securities
- Steps in Portfolio Construction Process
- Investment Objectives
- Investment Constraints
- Exposures limits to different Sectors, Entities and Asset Classes
- Unique needs and preferences
- Assessments of needs and requirements of investor
- Analysing the financial position of the investor
- Psychographic analysis of investor
- Life cycle analysis of investor
- Forecasting risk and return of various asset classes
- Benchmarking the client’s portfolio
- Asset allocation decision
- Portfolio Construction Principles
- Strategic versus Tactical Asset Allocation
- Rebalancing of Portfolio
CHAPTER 16: PORTFOLIO PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION
- Parameters to define performance – risk and return
- Rate of return measures
- Risk measures
- Risk-adjusted return measures.
- Performance Evaluation: Benchmarking and peer group analysis
- Performance attribution analysis
MODULE 6: OPERATIONS, REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT, COMPLIANCE AND ETHICS
CHAPTER 17: OPERATIONAL ASPECTS OF INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT
- Investors and the investing process
- PAN and KYC Process
- Dematerialisation and Re-materialisation of Securities
- Power of Attorney
- Account Opening Process for Non-Residents
- Process of Consolidating, reorganising and folio keeping/Maintenance of Investments
- Change in Status of Special Investor Categories
- Payment Instruments
- Documentation for Financial Advice
- Investing in mutual funds through the stock exchange platform
CHAPTER 18: KEY REGULATIONS
- Securities Contracts Regulation Act (SCRA 1956)
- SEBI Act 1992
- SEBI Prevention of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices Regulations, 2003
- Securities and Exchange Board of India (Intermediaries) Regulations, 2008
- SEBI (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations, 2015
- SEBI Investment Advisers Regulations, 2013
- Prevention of Money-Laundering Act, 2002
- Key provisions of various other acts, as applicable to investment advisory profession
- Violation of Regulations by Registered Investment Advisers and their consequence
CHAPTER 19: ETHICAL ISSUES
- Ethical issues
- Importance of ethical conduct of business
- Ethical issues for an Investment Adviser
- Ethical Dilemma
- Fiduciary responsibility of Investment Advisers
- Do’s and Don’ts for investors issued by SEBI
- Learn about addressing annual audit observations
- Global Best Practices
CHAPTER 20: GRIEVANCE REDRESS MECHANISM
- Consumer Protection Act
- Investor Grievance Redressal Mechanism
- Grievance Redress System
- Grievance Redress System of an Investment Adviser
- Grievance Redress System in Capital Market
- Grievance Redress System in Banking
- Grievance Redressal in Insurance
- Redress in Pension Sector
- Securities Appellate Tribunal
- Other Redressal Fora