Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “CFA Notes”
Dive into the nuances of yield and spread measures for fixed-rate bonds to grasp how investors compare and assess bond investment opportunities. You’ll untangle the complex interplay of yield-to-maturity, effective yield, and the specific yield measures applicable to callable bonds, floating-rate notes, and money market instruments. Bond Yield Measures Ever wondered how to compare different bond investment opportunities? This lesson …
Dive into the dynamics of investing in private capital, focusing on the nuances of equity and debt. You’ll decode the strategies behind private equity investments, including leveraged buyouts and venture capital, and get a grip on private debt’s various forms, from direct lending to distressed debt. Private Equity Peek behind the curtain of private equity and learn how investments in …
Unlocking the Time Value of Money for Fixed Income Investments | CFA Level I Welcome to the fascinating world of finance, where understanding the time value of money (TVM) can significantly impact your investment decisions, particularly in the realm of fixed income instruments. Whether you’re exploring zero-coupon bonds, fixed coupon bonds, or even annuities, grasping the concept of TVM is …
Understanding Portfolio Risk Measures | CFA Level I Quantitative Methods In this lesson, we’ll touch on the measures of portfolio risk, including Roy’s safety-first ratio, and more. Mean-Variance Analysis and Shortfall Risk Analysts use z-values to evaluate portfolio risk. For example, Portfolio A has an expected return of 10% and a standard deviation of 5%. An analyst views a return …
Unlock the intricacies of Mortgage-Backed Securities (MBS), where you’ll learn about residential loans, dive into the realm of residential and commercial MBS, and understand their unique market and instrument features. This lesson is your roadmap to mastering MBS fundamentals, from mortgage loans to securitization processes. Residential Mortgage Loans Strap in for a crash course in residential mortgage loans! This lesson …
Master the art of credit analysis, diving into the core of evaluating corporate and sovereign creditworthiness. This lesson takes you through the nuances of credit risks, the significance of capital structure, the intricacies of credit ratings, and the analytical depth required for corporate credit assessment. Credit Analysis for Government Issuers In this lesson, we’re heading into the realm of the …
Understanding Sovereign Debt | CFA Level I Today, we’re diving into the fascinating world of government and government-related debt. This introductory lesson will cover the characteristics, issuance, and trading of sovereign debt. What is Sovereign Debt? Sovereign debt, in simple terms, is money borrowed by national governments to fund their activities, including the maintenance of public goods and services. Governments …
Embark on an exploration of the fixed-income markets tailored for government issuers, shedding light on the spectrum from sovereign to quasi-government bonds, and diving into the process of sovereign debt issuance and trading. This journey equips you with the knowledge to navigate the complexities of government borrowing and the flow of these securities in the global marketplace. Bonds from Government …
Understanding Repurchase Agreements | CFA Level I Today, we’re diving deep into the world of short-term financing, focusing on a fascinating instrument known as the repurchase agreement, or repo for short. What is a Repurchase Agreement? In simple terms, a repurchase agreement involves two parties: one looking to raise funds by selling securities with a promise to buy them back …
Unpack the essentials of fixed-income markets for corporate issuers, where you’ll navigate through the strategies behind short-term funding, the mechanics of repurchase agreements, and the pivotal role of long-term corporate debt. This lesson offers a comprehensive understanding of how corporations engage with the fixed-income market to optimize their financial strategies and structure. Short-Term Funding for Banks Who’s ready to rock …
Are you a CFA Level I candidate, or someone who is exploring taking the CFA exam? Four years ago, I was in your shoes. I am a Computer Engineering graduate and have been working as an engineer all my life. Having developed a keen interest in finance, I decided on a career switch to the finance field and enrolled into the CFA program at the same time.
Adjusting to the drastic career change was tough. I naturally neglected the preparation for my Level I exam in June 2014. It was not until the middle of March 2014 that I realized I only had a little more than 2 months to the exam. To compound my problems, I basically did not have a preparation strategy. Having no background in finance at all, I tried very hard to read the curriculum from cover to cover, but eventually that fell flat. I can still recall the number of times I dozed off while studying, or just going back and forth trying to understand even the simplest concept. My mind simply could not keep up after a hard day at work.
Does all these sound familiar to you? Well, take heart. No matter how bleak it seems, at least sit for the exam and treat it as a learning experience. That was basically my attitude as I burrowed through my exam prep with toil and stress. By God’s grace, I did pass my Level I exam in June 2014. It was an experience I would not want to revisit though.
For the Level II exam, I endeavoured not to repeat the mistakes I made. Based on the Pareto 80/20 principle, I learnt to extract the most essential bits from the curriculum enough to give me that 80% result to pass. Being a visual learner, I took notes and summaries in pictorial form. Instead of reserving huge segments of time to study, I carved out pockets of time to learn and practise – accommodating to my full-time job. I managed to pass my Level II and Level III exams consecutively with considerably less effort and stress than when I did my level I.
I love the CFA Program and truly value the skills and ethics that are imparted to make me a better finance professional. My desire is to help candidates who are keen to pursue this path to do so in the most effective and painless process as possible – based on the lessons that I learnt as a candidate. I have set up PrepNuggets with the vision to revolutionise learning by using technology, catering to the short attention span that we can afford. If this makes sense to you, join the PrepNuggets community by signing up for your free student account. I am confident that the materials that we have laboriously crafted will bring you closer to that dream pass with just that 20% effort. Let us do the hard work for you.
Regards,
Keith Tan, CFA
Founder and Chief Instructor
PrepNuggets
Have you ever gotten stuck in your study because you can’t remember a formula, or what a specific term means? Now, say goodbye to scanning through all the videos and ploughing through pages and pages just to find what you are looking for. All the important formulas, definitions and diagrams you need for the exam are now at your fingertips at prepnuggets.com/glossary.
What’s more, these quick references are deeply integrated in our lessons, so you get a good idea of what the lesson covers even before watching the video. The references also point you to specific video lessons where it is covered, so you can quickly access the corresponding video to learn more about the term.
Available now for all Level I topics, this service is exclusive for our Premium and Pro members only. We will progressively add the rest of the topic areas over the next few months.
We think this is a game-changer for your CFA success!
On the 1st of March 2018, we took a bold step of faith to put our Financial Reporting and Analysis (FRA) course on Udemy.
For those of you who are new to Udemy, it is the world’s largest marketplace for online courses. Think of it like the EBay of online courses.
So imagine our trepidation in pitting our course in this highly competitive platform, against the many CFA prep providers already entrenched on the platform.
Overwhelming.
Yes, that’s the word that aptly describes the response to our course from the Udemy community.
The “Best Seller” tag from Udemy is attached to only one best selling course in its category. In just 1 month, our FRA course became the best selling CFA course on the platform. If you do a search for ‘CFA Level 1’, our course comes out on top in the search rankings.
Since the launch on 1 March, we have had more than 250 paid enrolments. While we are heartened by this figure, nothing beats knowing that our course has reached 50 countries around the world! It was simply heartwarming to receive messages from students from countries we barely know about, telling us how much they love the course and their wish that we would produce more of such courses. This certainly spurs us on to produce more materials to ease the burden of CFA candidates worldwide.
As of today, our course has a high average rating of 4.8 out of 5.0. 74% of the reviewers gave us 5 stars! We take this as endorsement that we are doing things right, and will continue in using the Pareto principle approach for our course materials. There are, of course, constructive feedback as well, and we aim to incorporate some of the feedback in producing the upcoming courses.
We are working hard to bring more of our courses to Udemy! We realise some candidates prefer to purchase courses as they need individually, so we endeavour to give more options to our potential students. Check out our Udemy Courses Page to find out which of our courses are available on Udemy for your purchase.
If you have purchased our course on Udemy and would like to continue with the PrepNuggets study approach for other topics, we have an awesome upgrade offer to Premium membership for you!
