MSc Accounting and Finance

The dissertation project brings together theory and application of qualititaive and/or quantitative research methodology in a small-scale research project. The project may focus on, critical literature review, market-based accounting research, the determinants and consequences of corporate governance, financial markets, corporate actions and reporting, and fintech. Students are allocated a dissertation supervisor in Term 2.

The aim of this module is to introduce the philosophical, theoretical and practical bases of conducting academic research.

This module provides students with fundamental knowledge in principles of international corporate finance and asset pricing to understand and analyse the major issues affecting the financial policies of corporation in capital markets. This course is concerned with the decisions that firms make about financing their investment in a global economic environment. You will study the principles underlying such decision-making, their application and debates over them in relation to the modern literature to develop analytical skills in a challenging global environment, and other complex specialised contexts.

This course provides an introduction to the applications of econometric methods in finance. It examines how one can formulate the relationships suggested by financial and economic theory in mathematical and statistical format, how to estimate these models using sample data, and how to make relevant statements based on the parameters of the estimated models. The course examines the assumptions that are necessary for the estimators to have desirable properties and the assumptions necessary to make statistical inferences. In addition, the course explores what happens when these assumptions are not satisfied, and what one can do in these circumstances. The course concludes with an examination of how to select an appropriate model for applications in finance.

This module provides students with fundamental knowledge of the important components and structures of financial statements. It aims to provide a grounding in analytical and numerical skills, professional ethics in the real world, share valuations, and assessments of the quality of corporate financial reports.

The business world has traditionally relied on accounting and finance practitioners to provide a summary of business performance in form of financial statements at regular intervals. Also, quantitative business intelligence has traditional being an important field in accounting and finance.

While these two roles continue to be important, there is marked change in their nature, frequency, and potentials given the exponential growth in unstructured data. Consistent with Moore's Law, there's also an exponential increase in computing power. The current business environment, therefore, requires managers to know data analysis and programming to make sense of the huge volume of data. The module, therefore, complements other modules on the programme, such as financial accounting and financial statement analysis, management accounting, and applied econometrics.

The advances in digital technologies resulted in various opportunities and threats to existing economic and societal systems. More specifically, digitalisation restructures policymaking processes, regulatory governance, and poses significant structural challenges to public administration. Besides, the rise of blockchain technology and distributed electronic ledgers add another dimension with the emergence of cryptocurrency and cryptoassets and their regulation. In this context, this module examines the key concepts and theoretical frameworks at the intersection of digital government and regulation. The module begins with presenting the key implications of digitalisation and the rise of disruptive technologies for public administration and public policy. Next, the module studies blockchain infrastructure, regulation of disruptive technologies, fintech and regtech, and finally cryptoassets and central bank digital currencies

This module provides students with a basic conceptual framework and practical knowledge regarding finance and investments in emerging markets. This module is concerned with the differences in financial systems between emerging markets and mature market economies; and how these differences explain the observed discrepancies in corporate financing behaviour between firms in emerging markets and those in mature market economies.