Última revisión realizada: 11/05/2022

Subject name: Finance in a Digital Environment
Study: Master in Business Administration
ECTS 6
Four-month period: Second four-month period
Type of subject: Compulsory

Presentation

The purpose of this subject is to provide the student with a broad and global strategic vision of the management of the finances of a company, and relate it to the current digital environment in which the company operates. Business finances are subject to rapid evolution as there is constant innovation in financial markets influenced by technological advances and the globalization of the economy. Companies need professionals with qualified financial knowledge who are able to meet their current financial requirements.

Basic Competences

  • CB6: Possess and understand knowledge that provides a basis or opportunity to be original in the development and / or application of ideas, often in a research context.
  • CB7: That students know how to apply the knowledge acquired and their ability to solve problems in new or unfamiliar environments within broader (or multidisciplinary) contexts related to their area of study.
  • CB8: That students are able to integrate knowledge and face the complexity of making judgments based on information that, being incomplete or limited, includes reflections on social and ethical responsibilities linked to the application of their knowledge and judgments.
  • CB9: That students know how to communicate their conclusions and the knowledge and the reasons behind them to specialized and non-specialized audiences in a clear and unambiguous way.
  • CB10: That students have the learning skills that allow them to continue studying in a way that will be largely self-directed or autonomous.

General Competences

  • CG1: Master and integrate techniques, instruments and management methods necessary for the development of their professional activity.
  • CG2: Increase the knowledge of the management of companies and the different areas of management.
  • CG4: That students know how to communicate their conclusions, present projects, results, plans, knowledge and the reasons behind them to specialized and non-specialized audiences in a clear and unambiguous way.
  • CG5: That students are able to integrate their knowledge of various functional areas of the company with generally incomplete or limited information of the company environment to make decisions and solve problems in complex and multidisciplinary situations.

Specífic Competences

  • CE5: Know how to manage management indicators to make business decisions based on them.
  • CE12: Understand the functional organization of the company. Interrelations between areas. Identify and understand the factors and dimensions that are part of the company at functional level and the characteristics of its administration system
  • CE13: Understand the impact of ICT in business management and the competitiveness of the company.
  • CE14: Knowing the existence, applications and limitations of business information systems and their impact on decision making, competitiveness and speed of reaction.
  • CE20: Ability to make business decisions based on the analysis and interpretation of the four fundamental financial statements of the company, Balance Sheet, Profit and Loss Account, Statement of Cash Flow and Statement of Net Assets and the main ratios and indicators of business and financial management.
  • CE21: Understand the financing of working capital and fixed assets, the financing of projects and the self-generated funds of products or business areas.
  • CE22: Be able to relate business management decision making to macroeconomic changes.

Transversal Competences

  • CT6: Communicate in an efficient, structured and orderly manner, the most relevant aspects of a Project.
  • CT8: Facilitate the process of student integration to the professional business world.
  • CT9: Provide students with learning skills that allow them to continue studying autonomously.

Section 1. Financial management and analysis of financial statements

Unit 1. Introduction to financial management

  • Introduction and objectives
  • What is finance
  • General areas of finance
  • The Importance of finance in non-financial areas
  • What objectives should companies pursue?
  • Management measures to maximize shareholder wealth
  • Should earnings per share be maximized?
  • The roles of managers as agents for shareholders
  • What role do ethics and corporate governance play in business success?
  • International and local financial management
  • Bibliographic references

Unit 2. Introduction to financial statements. Part I

  • Introduction and objectives
  • Financial reports
  • The balance sheet
  • Income statement
  • Statement of cash flows
  • Statement of retained earnings
  • Key concepts about financial statements
  • Financial statement ratios
  • Financial analysis and interpretation: Relationship between liabilities and capital stock
  • Bibliographic references

Unit 3. Introduction to financial statements. Part II

  • Introduction and objectives
  • Basic analytical methods
  • Vertical analysis
  • Common-sized statements
  • Other analytical measures
  • Liquidity and solvency analysis
  • Accounts receivable analysis
  • Inventory analysis
  • Profitability ratios
  • Bibliographic references

Section 2. Management of current assets and liabilities

Unit 4. Management of current assets and liabilities

  • Introduction and objectives
  • The cash conversion cycle
  • Cash Management
  • Cash budget
  • Key ideas that students should understand about the cash budget
  • Bibliographic references

Section 3. Cost, capital structure and investment in assets

Unit 5. Cost and capital structure

  • Introduction and objectives
  • Cost of capital components
  • The Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM)
  • Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC)
  • Bibliographic references

Unit 6. Asset capital budgeting

  • Introduction and objectives
  • Investment decisions and maximizing shareholder wealth
  • Classification of investment projects
  • Estimating cash flows from capital budgeting projects
  • Capital budgeting techniques
  • Project evaluation techniques
  • Incorporating risk into capital budgeting analysis
  • Bibliographic References

Section 4. Financial risks, derivatives, international finance and their relationship with the economy

Unit 7. Financial risk management and derivatives. Part I

  • Introduction and objectives
  • Reasons for risk management
  • Background on derivatives
  • Options
  • The Black-Scholes Option Pricing Model (OPM)
  • Bibliographic References

Unit 8. Financial risk management and derivatives. Part II

  • Introduction and objectives
  • Forwards and futures
  • Other types of derivatives
  • Use of derivatives to reduce financial risks
  • Financial risk management
  • Bibliographic References

Unit 9. International finance and its relationship with the economy

  • Introduction and objectives
  • Multinational/global corporation
  • Multinational versus domestic financial management
  • Exchange rate
  • The International Monetary System
  • The foreign exchange market
  • Spot rates and forward rates
  • Interest rate, inflation and exchange rate
  • Bibliographic references

Section 5. Fintech

Unit 10. Fintech's implications for the financial sector

  • Introduction and objectives
  • What is Fintech?
  • What are the main Fintech products and services?
  • The evolution of Fintech
  • The regulatory environment
  • Cryptocurrencies and DLT Technology
  • Implications for the financial sector
  • Implications for financial management
  • Bibliographic references

 

The different tasks and activities programmed during the semester have been developed with the goal of adapting the learning process to the different capabilities, necessities and interests of the students.

The activities included in the subject are:

  • Practical cases. Will provide the student with actual business situations that will need to analyse and, after that, make decisions, evaluate the consequences and alternatives. They will allow acquiring intellectual skills to face sudden situations or to plan action programs adapted to a changing environment where there is no math logic.

    In the weekly program you can check when complete them and in the Virtual Classroom you will find all the information about how to develope them and how and when submit them.
  • Participation in events. During the course you will be participating in different events. Some of those events are attendance to online classes, collaborative work.
Download the program

These activities are combined with the following aspects:

  • Personal Study
  • Tutoring. he tutoring class can be implemented through different tools and means. During the course of the subject, the teacher-tutor plans the individual tutoring on specific days for the resolution of academic-oriented doubts through “Consultation sessions”. Supplementing these sessions, students have also available the “Ask your teacher” forum through which they can formulate questions and check the corresponding answers on general aspects of the subject. Due to the very nature of the media used, there are no fixed schedules for the students.
  • Final exam presence-based or online modality

The hours dedicated to each activity are detailed as follows:

TRAINING ACTIVITIES HOURS OF SUBJECT % PRESENCE
Virtual sessions 15 100%
Master classes 4 0
Personal study of basic material 60 0
Reading of complimentary material 32 0
Realization of practical cases and self-evaluation tests 45 0
Tutoring 16 0
Collaborative work (forums and/or discussion groups) 7 0
Final exam 1 100%
Total 180 hours -

You can personalize your study plan choosing the type of activity that best matches your profile. The tutor will advise you and help you elaborate your study plan. S/he will always be available to guide throughout the course.

Basic bibliography

The section Basic Bibliography is essential for the course. If any document (reading, article,…) is not available in the virtual classroom, you will have to find it by other means: UNIR bookshop, virtual library…

The necessary texts for the study of this subject have been elaborated by UNIR and are available in a digital format to consult, download or print inthe virtual classroom.

Complementary bibliography

  • Brealey, R., Myers, S. y Allen, F. (2016). Principios de finanzas corporativas (9th ed.).
    McGraw-Hill.
  • Ferrel, O. C., Fraedrich, J. y Ferrel, L. (2014). Business ethics: Ethical decision making
     & class (10th ed.). Cengage Learning.
  • Gruninger, M. C. y Kind, A. H. (2013). WACC calculations in practice: Incorrect
    results due to inconsistent assumptions - status quo and improvements. Accounting and Finance Research, 2, 30-50. doi:10.5430/afr.v2n2p36
  • Horcher, K. (2015). Essential of financial risk management. John Wiley & Sons.
  • Pintado, C. (2019). Open Road: Open Banking in Europe and the UK. AFP Exchange, 39(2), pp.  8-11.
  • Ross, S. y Westerfield, R. (2018). Finanzas corporativas (3rd. ed.).  New York, NY: McGraw- Hill.

  • Ureña, A. y Gómez, P. (2011). Gestión del riesgo financiero en la banca internacional.
    Pirámide.
  • Uria, F. y Carpintero, A. (2018). Servicios de pago: adaptación a la Directiva PSDII. Lefebvre-El Derecho, S. A.

The evaluation system is based on the following numerical chart:

0 - 4, 9 Suspenso (SS)
5,0 - 6,9 Aprobado (AP)
7,0 - 8,9 Notable (NT)
9,0 - 10 Sobresaliente (SB)

The grade is made up of two components:

The exam is done at the end of the four-month period and is compulsory final exam either in presence- based or online modality. It comprises the 60% of the final grade and so that the grade obtained in this exam is added to the final grade it is obligatory to PASS it.

The continuous evaluation comprises the 40% of the final grade. This 40% of the final grade consists of the grades obtained in the different training activities carried out during the four-month period.

EVALUATION SYSTEM WEIGHTING min - max
Student participation (sessions, forums) 0% - 40%
Study cases 0% - 40%
Self-evaluation test 0% - 40%
Final exam 60% - 60%

Studying online means you can organize your study as you wish, as long as you meet the due dates of the different assignments (activities, tasks and tests). In order to help you, we propose the following steps:

  1. From our online platform you will have access to each of the subjects you are enrolled. Apart from this, you can access to the Aula de información general. In this section, you have available all the documents on how to use the different tools included in the virtual classroom, how a subject is organized and you will also have the possibility to organize your study plan with the tutor.
  2. Do not forget to check the weekly program. You will see which part of the content of the course you have to work on every week.
  3. After knowing your work for the week, go to Units in your virtual classroom. There, you will have access to the study material (theory and practice) from the unit you need to study throughout the week.
  4. Begin with the reading of the Key ideas of the unit, they constitute the content of the unit and the basic material of study. Check also the In deep section which contains supplementary material.
  5. Devote some time when doing the Practical Cases and Test. In the subject Program we will detail which are the corresponding activities for each week.
  6. We strongly recommend to take part in the events of the course (On-site virtual classes, Trabajo colaborativo, etc.). To know the exact date for each one of these events you must visit the communication media on the Virtual Classroom. Your teacher and your tutor will inform of the subjects news.

In the Aula de información general of the master you will always find available the documentation where we explain how the units are structured and what you will be able to find in each one of its sections.

Remember that in the Aula de información general you can check how the different tools of the virtual classroom work: email, forum, online classes, sending the tasks, etc.

Please, take into account the following tips…

  • Whatever you study plan is, go often to the virtual classroom so that you are always up to date about the course and you are in contact with your teacher and your tutor.
  • Remember you are not alone: send an email to your tutor if you have any doubt. If you attend the online classes, you can also ask your teacher about the contents of the unit. Also, you can always write your doubts and questions about the contents in the Forum of each subject (Ask the teacher).
  • Be active and participate! Whenever it is possible, attend the online classes and take part in the forums. The exchange of information, opinions, ideas and resources enrich us and the course.
  • And, remember, you are studying online: your effort and perseverance are the key element to obtain good results. Don’t leave everything to the last minute!!!