CAIIB Advance Business and Financial Management (ABFM) | Syllabus and Study Material

MODULE A: THE MANAGEMENT PROCESS

Chapters

Topics

Basics of Management

Definition of Management, The Management Process, Functions of Management, Importance of Management, Management Thoughts & Approaches, Management Challenges & Opportunities, Introduction to Strategic Management, Business Environment Analysis.

Planning

Fundamentals of Planning, Steps in Planning, Importance of Planning, Advantages and disadvantages of planning, Management by Objectives, Plan Components, Contingency planning, Forecasting & Decision Making.

Organizing

Introduction and Fundamentals of Organizing, Importance of Organisation, Stages in Organising Process, The Organising Process, Principles of organizing, Types of Organisations, Organisation structure, Organisation charts and manuals, The Organisation culture, Authority & Responsibility, Key Issues in Organisation Structure, Organisational Change, Conflict Dynamics.

Staffing

Functions of Staffing, Objectives of staffing, Nature of staffing, Facets of staffing, Significance of staffing, System approach to staffing, Recruitment, Selection, Training, Retention and development, Knowledge and learning management, Performance Appraisal, and Human Resource Development.

Directing

Characteristics of directing, Importance of directing, Elements of directing, Leadership, Motivation, Communication, Supervision.

Controlling

Basics of Controlling, Characteristics of controlling, Advantages of controlling, Limitations of controlling, Types of control management, Control process, Relation between planning and control, Control Techniques, Control technique and Information Technology.

MODULE B: ADVANCED CONCEPTS OF FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

Chapters

Topics

Sources of Finance and Financial Strategies

Equity Capital, Internal Accruals, Preference Capital, Term Loans, Debentures, Alternative Financing Strategies in the Context of Regulatory Requirements

Financial and Operating Leverages

Financial Leverage, Degree of Financial Leverage and its Behaviour, Operating Leverage, Degree of Operating Leverage and its Behaviour, Combined or Total Leverage

Capital Investment Decisions

Objectives of capital investment decisions, Estimation of project cash flows, Forecasting and its relation to regulation of capital for short-, medium- and long-term periods, Relationship between sales, production and other functional budgets, Cash Forecasts, Cost analysis for projects, Methods of Investment appraisal; Social Cost Benefit Analysis

Capital Budgeting for International Project Investment Decisions

Foreign Investment Analysis, Special Considerations-Foreign & Home Currency Cash Flows, Foreign Currency Discount Rates Computation, International Portfolio Investment and Institutional Constraints, Direct and Indirect Channels for International Portfolio Investment, Exchange and Country Risk, Return and Risk of Foreign Investment, Capital asset pricing model, Arbitrage pricing theory; International Capital Budgeting Issues involved in overseas projects, Approaches for evaluation of overseas projects, Evaluation methods, Impact of transfer pricing

Adjustment of Risk and Uncertainty in Capital Budgeting Decision

Sources & Perspectives on Risk, Sensitivity Analysis, Scenario Analysis, Hillier Model, Simulation Analysis, Decision Tree Analysis, Corporate Risk Analysis, Managing Risk, Project Selection Under Risk, Risk Analysis in Practice

Decision Making

Decision Making using Cost-Volume-Profit (CVP) Analysis, Decision Making using Relevant Cost Concepts, Decision Making using Activity Based Costing, Ethical and Non-Financial Considerations Relevant to Decision Making

MODULE C: VALUATION, MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

Chapters

Topics

Corporate Valuations

Approaches to Corporate Valuation, Adjusted Book Value Approach, Stock and Debt Approach, Direct Comparison Approach, Discounted Cash Flow Approach, Steps involved in valuation using DCF Approach,

Discounted Cash Flow Valuation

Estimating Inputs, Approaches to Discounted Cash Flow Models, Various discounted Cash Flow Models, Dividend Discount Model, Applicability of the Dividend Discount Model,

Other Non-DCF valuation models

Relative valuation model, Equity Valuation Multiples Model,  Enterprise value multiples Model, Choosing the right multiples, Book value approach Model, Stock and debt approach

Special cases of valuation

Intangibles –Brand, Human valuation etc., Real estate Firms, Start-up firms, Firms with negative or low earnings, Financial Service companies, Distressed firms, Valuation of cash and cross holdings, Warrants and convertibles, Cyclical & non-cyclical companies, Holding companies, E-commerce firms

Mergers, Acquisitions and Restructuring

Types of Transactions, Reasons for Merger, Mechanics of a Merger, Costs and Benefits of a Merger, Exchange Ratio in a Merger, Purchase of a Division / Plant, Takeovers, Leveraged Buyouts, Acquisition Financing, Business Alliances, Managing Acquisitions, Divestitures, Holding Company, Demergers Deal structuring and financial strategies Negotiations, Payment and legal considerations, Tax and accounting considerations, Tax reliefs and benefits in case of Amalgamation in India, Financial reporting of business combinations, Deal Financing, Financing of cross border acquisitions in India

MODULE D: EMERGING BUSINESS SOLUTIONS

Chapters

Topics

Hybrid Finance

Advantages and disadvantages of Hybrid securities, Types of hybrid securities, Preference Share Capital, Features of Warrants, Features of Convertible Debentures, Differences between Warrants and Convertible debentures, Valuation of Warrants, Valuation of Compulsorily Convertible (Partly or fully) Debentures, Objective of issuing Warrants and Convertible debentures, Features of Foreign Currency Convertible Bond (FCCB), Mezzanine Financing, Innovative Hybrids.

Start-up Finance

Benefits to startup under the Startup Plan, Startup definition in India, Challenges faced by Startups, State Startup Policy, Pitch Presentation, Programmes and competitions for startups, Tax exemptions, Funding, Investor’s outlook in Startups, Funding schemes and programmes, International challenges and bridges.

Private Equity and Venture Capital

Characteristics of Venture Capital Investments, Characteristics shared by Private Equity and Venture Capital as well as their key distinctions, Financing options available through Venture Capital, Investment in Private Equity, Benefits obtained through private equity, Drawbacks to the practice of private equity, Due diligence, Exit Strategies.

Artificial Intelligence

History of Artificial Intelligence, Applicability of Artificial Intelligence, Artificial Intelligence in Banking and Finance, The future scope of Artificial Intelligence, Neural Networks, Control Theory and Cybernetics, Rational Agents, Motion and Manipulation, Tools and Techniques of Artificial Intelligence, Artificial Intelligence and Morality.

Business Analytics as a Management Tool

Essentials of Business analytics, Types of Analytics, Elements of Business Analytics, Big Data Analytics, Web and Mobile Analytics, Comparing web Vs Mobile Analytics, Importance of Business Analytics.

Green and Sustainable Financing

ISO Standards for Green Finance, Building Green Finance, International Best Practices towards Green Finance, Public Policy in India, Progress of Green Finance in India, Challenges and way forward, Growth of Regulatory Framework, National Efforts towards Green and Sustainable Financing, RBI Views on Climate Risk and Sustainable Finance.

Special Purpose Acquisition Company

Advantages of SPAC, Disadvantages of SPAC, SPAC Formation and Timelines, The SPAC Merger, Stakeholders, Characteristics of SPACs, Process, SPAC Capital Structure, Trust Account, Warrants, Forward Purchase, IPO Agreements, De-SPAC Process.