WHU
Course code
ECON432
Course type
BSc Course
Weekly Hours
2.0
ECTS
3.0
Term
FS 2024
Language
Englisch
Lecturers
Prof. Dr. Nic Schaub
Please note that exchange students obtain a higher number of credits in the BSc-program at WHU than listed here. For further information please contact directly the International Relations Office.

The objective of this course is to provide students with an introduction to asset management. We will begin with mutual funds, the most important investment vehicles in the asset management industry. We will look at investment strategies of mutual funds and evaluate their performance. We will also shed light on other players in asset management, such as hedge funds. Finally, we will talk about recent trends in the asset management industry, such as investment strategies based on alternative data, socially responsible investing, robo-advice, and social trading. Throughout the course, we will discuss strengths and weaknesses of the different players in the asset management industry. The assessment will be mostly based on (recent) academic research.

Problem sets accompany the lectures. Moreover, I plan to have one to two guest lectures from industry experts.

Roadmap

  1. Mutual funds
  2. Investment strategies
  3. Performance measurement
  4. Hedge funds
  5. Recent trends in asset management
Date Time
Wednesday, 17.01.2024 11:30 - 15:15
Tuesday, 23.01.2024 15:30 - 18:45
Wednesday, 31.01.2024 15:30 - 18:45
Tuesday, 06.02.2024 15:30 - 18:45
Wednesday, 14.02.2024 08:00 - 11:15
Tuesday, 20.02.2024 08:00 - 11:15
Tuesday, 23.04.2024 09:00 - 12:00
  • Get an overview of the asset management industry
  • Understand how mutual funds are set up
  • Know about various investment strategies
  • Assess the performance of investment strategies
  • Understand how hedge funds differ from mutual funds
  • Know about recent trends in the asset management industry
  • Identify strengths and weaknesses of different players in the asset management industry
Bodie, Z., A. Kane, and A.J. Marcus, 2021: Investments, 12th edition, McGraw-Hill (older editions should be fine as well).Academic papers, industry reports, and newspaper articles (will be made available during the lectures)
Lectures, problem sets, online questions, guest lectures
Written exam
WHU