Syllabus

Introduction to Financial Markets

Francesco Spinoglio

Barcelona, 2024-25

Do Good. Do Better
Introduction to Financial Markets 1

Table of contents

1 Course description / Introduction to the

course
2 Learning objective and competencies
3 Course format and methodological
approach
4 Course contents
5 Assessment
6 Materials
7 Faculty leading the course
8 Timetable and sections
 Introduction to Financial Markets 2

1. Course description / Introduction to the

course
The course has been designed on three levels in order to promote
understanding and the implementation of the basic concepts. The syllabus has
therefore been designed to include: 1.A theoretical level: Theoretical concepts
are formally presented and then applied by means of examples. In order to do
so, students will be provided with materials that are used in class to develop
each subject. 2.A self-learning level: Students will be given reading
assignments on both theoretical and research contents which will provide them
with in depth knowledge of the topics that are covered in class. 3.A relational or
group level: The course makes use of the case study methodology whereby
students working in groups can analyze, propose and put forward solutions to
the cases they have been assigned.
The aim of this course is to provide you with a strong understanding of financial
markets and the main types of products traded within these markets. The
course will focus on the money markets, the foreign exchange markets and
fixed income markets. You will learn how instruments are priced, how they are
traded, and how they are used to hedge financial risks.

2. Learning objectives and competencies

1.Understand the most important macroeconomic indicators.
2. Analyze the social, environmental, and financial returns of an investment.
3. Evaluate and measure the impact of investments using established metrics
and tools.
4. Recognize the economic, legal and social concepts that define the context of
different stakeholders in the context of international relations and global
governance.
5. Apply relevant techniques and tools to analyze and evaluate economic and
financial information.
6. Interpret the economic-financial situation of a company or institution.
7. Develop strategies for sourcing, structuring, and managing impact
investments.
8. Create a profitable investment portfolio.
 Introduction to Financial Markets 3

9.
3. Course format and methodological
approach
The course involves twenty-two 2.5 hour sessions. Sessions include lectures,
presentations, exercises and cases, and involve class discussion.
Assignments and cases. The case method is one of the most effective
pedagogical tools to sharpen your analytical and decision-making skills, as it
requires you to be an active participant in financial decisions. The discussion
constitutes an opportunity to defend your position and to learn from others, by
listening to their comments and criticisms. The professor will make cold calls to
ensure that cases have been prepared correctly. Classrooms are our training
environments to prepare you for business challenges.
In class we will perform exercises to put into practice the theory learned. These
exercises will be corrected and discussed in class, but solutions will not be
provided after class. If students fail to attend a class, they must make sure they
solve these exercises at home and contact other colleagues or the professor if
any material is unclear. Solutions to exercises and cases will not be
distributed.
Group presentations. Students will present in groups in several sessions.
Further details will be given in class.
AI policy. All AI tools may be used (including ChatGPT), but when integrating
AI-generated content into your work, it must be quoted and cited adequately.
Laptop/tablets policy. You are not allowed to use your laptop/tablets during
case discussions. You have to be 100% focused in the discussions. You may
use your laptop/tablets during the lectures/discussion sessions ONLY for
academic use. Any other use of your laptops will penalize your grade on class
participation.
Slides of the sessions will be posted in Moodle before each class.

4. Course Contents

Topics:

1 Introduction to Financial Markets and Risk management

2 Monetary Policy and Macroeconomic Indicators

3 Enterprise Value and Discount Cash Flow (DCF)

Introduction to Financial Markets 4

4 Value Investment

5 Fundamental and Technical Analysis

6 ESG Criteria and Green Bonds

7 Equity Market

8 Forex Market

9 New Trends in Finance: Blockchain and cryptocurrencies

10 Commodities Market

11 Fixed Markets

12 Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT)

13 Projects and Presentations

5
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5. Assessment

Description %

Projects & Presentations 45

Class Participation 5

Final Exam 50

Important clarifications:
1. To pass the course, a minimum grade of 50% is required on the final
exam. If the final exam mark is above 50%, then the weighted
average of the components listed above becomes the final grade for
the course. Otherwise, the final grade for the course will be the lower
mark of the two. If the final exam mark is “No presentado”, the final
exam grade will be the grade of the retake and the weight of the
retake will be the same as that of the final exam.

2. If a student misses the group presentations for a reason approved by

the GEL Program, the student can receive the same grade as his
group (if the group confirms the contribution of the student to the
preparation of the presentation), or the 45% weight of the
presentation can be added to the final exam 50% weight.

3. In case a retake exam is needed, the final course grade will be 100%
determined by the retake exam mark.

4. Class participation will be evaluated every session by the instructor.

Only relevant comments/questions will be valued. This grade will be
subjective, but it is not negotiable.

5. Final exam will be in class and closed book. No cheat sheets or

wireless devices are allowed in the exam, only approved financial
calculators.
 Introduction to Financial Markets 6

6. Materials

The main reading materials for the course are contained in these required
textbooks, all of which are available in ESADE’s library:

- Jesús Huerta de Soto, Money, bank credit and economic cycles.

- Benjamin Graham, The Intelligent Investor.

- John Murphy, Technical Analysis of the Financial Markets.

- Marcos López de Prada, Machine Learning for Asset Managers

(Elements in Quantitative Finance).

7. Faculty leading the course

Guide: Prof. Dr. Francesco Spinoglio is a collaborating professor of
Finance in the Department of Economics, Finance and Accounting at ESADE.
He holds a PhD. from the University of Barcelona and has been operating in
the financial markets since 2017. He holds a Master's degree in Blockchain,
Smart contracts and cryptoeconomics from the University of Alcalá and has
published several academic articles on the banking world and the
decentralized finance sector, including Redefining Banking Through Defi: a
New Proposal for Free Banking Based on Blockchain Technology and DeFi
2.0 Model (Journal of New Finance) and Concentrated liquidity in Uniswap
V3: A new strategy to optimize the capital bear market (Journal of New
Finance). He is CEO and co-founder of Fórmula cripto, technical analysis
script programmer and consultant for Spain for Elementum Internacional, a
Swiss-based gold and silver trading company.

His areas of interest are fully related to financial markets, blockchain and
global economy, with some technical notes about derivatives and their use
in commodity, cryptocurrencies and decentralized finance.
Email address: francesco.spinoglio@esade.edu

This course is strictly ruled by ESADE’s Honour Code

Introduction to Financial Markets 7

"I will not lie, cheat or steal to gain an

academic advantage. I will respect all ESADE
students, faculty and staff with my words and
deeds."

The violations of the ESADE Honor Code include the following:

Lying: Lying includes knowingly communicating an untruth in order to gain

an unfair academic or employment advantage.
Cheating: Cheating includes, but is not limited to, using unauthorized
materials to complete an assignment; copying the work of another person;
unauthorized providing of materials or information (e.g. proprietary course
information) to another person; plagiarism; unauthorized providing of
materials or information to another person during an exam. All
communications, written, oral or otherwise, among students during
examinations, are forbidden, as is the use of notes, books, computers,
calculators or other written material except when approved by the
instructor.
Stealing: Stealing includes, but is not limited to, taking the property of
another member of the ESADE community without permission, defacing or
vandalizing the property of the ESADE Business School, or the misuse of
ESADE resources.
Respect for others and professional conduct: Respect for others
includes treating all ESADE students, staff, faculty and external contacts
connected to the school with politeness and cordiality, refraining from using
abusive language or physical violence.
Upon witnessing a violation of the Honour Code, a student has a moral
obligation to inform the student whose conduct is believed to be in
violation of the Code that the Code has been violated. Each member of the
ESADE community, as a person of integrity, has a personal obligation to
adhere to this requirement, both on campus and when representing ESADE
off campus.
Failure to comply with the more explicit guidelines set forth by the
Programme’s Rules and Regulations can also be considered as breach of the
Honour Code.
Violations of this agreement and will be governed by Programme
Management which has the right to exercise any disciplinary action
necessary in order to uphold the standards set forth herewith and
in the Programme’s Rules and Regulations.