POST GRADUATE PROGRAMME IN MANAGEMENT

Academic Year 2018-2019 | Term VI

ETHICS IN FINANCE

Credits: One
Course instructor: Professor Krishna Reddy
Email: krishna.reddy@xtra.co.nz | Phone: +64277403241
Consultation hours: Wednesday 1pm to 2pm (Students that need to see me outside the
consultation hour needs to send an email stating the reason. It will be highly recommended that
students make appoint in groups that they belong to for the course.)

Course Introduction:

Ethical practices are important as it instills public trust in the fairness of markets, thus allowing
markets to function efficiently. Therefore, ethical practices by finance and investment
professionals lead to increased investor confidence in the global capital markets. The material
covered in this course provide a framework for the ethical conduct in the investment profession
(as presented by the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standard of Professional Conduct) and
managerial ethical decision making.

We will discuss and analyze several case studies relating to scandals that have shaken public
confidence in the ethics of Wall Street and in many countries around the world. These
discussions/debates provide avenues for identifying, evaluating and discussing ethical issues
relating to finance institutions, both domestically and internationally. The aim of this course is to
explain and debate the relevance of ethics and ethical practices in the operations of financial
institutions and in the personal conduct of finance professionals and managerial decision making.

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Those students intending to have a fulfilling and effective career in finance or in management
roles.

This course examines the role of ethics in finance and provision of financial services. The material
covered includes the framework for ethical conduct in the investment profession as presented by
CFA Institute of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct. Discussion of examples of
scandals that have shaken public trust and confidence in the ethics of Wall Street and in other
countries, the financial sectors internationally and domestically, will provide avenues for
identifying and discussing ethical concerns and issues. Ethical practices are important as it instills
public trust in the fairness of markets, thus allowing markets to function efficiently. Therefore,
ethical practices by finance and investment professionals lead to increased investor confidence in
the global capital markets. The material covered in this course provide a framework for the ethical
conduct in the investment profession as presented by the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and
Standard of Professional Conduct.

We will discuss and analyze several case studies relating to scandals that have shaken public
confidence in the ethics of Wall Street and in many countries around the world. These
discussions/debates provide avenues for identifying, evaluating and discussing ethical issues
relating to finance institutions, both domestically and internationally.

The material covered includes the framework for ethical conduct in the investment profession as
presented by CFA Institute of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct. Discussion of
examples of scandals that have shaken public trust and confidence in the ethics of Wall Street and
in other countries, the financial sectors internationally and domestically, will provide avenues for
identifying and discussing ethical concerns and issues.

Course Objectives:

The aim of this course is to explain and debate the relevance of ethics and ethical practices in the
operations of financial institutions and in the personal conduct of finance professionals.

Those students intending to have a fulfilling and effective career in finance, such as, investment
management, portfolio management and financial planning/advisory, will be better informed of
the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct.

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Course Learning Outcome:
Students who successfully complete this course should be able to:
1. Explain the major theories of ethics as a basis for the analysis and resolution of ethical
issues in finance.
2. Critically examine ethical standards and issues of questionable professional conduct in
finance.
3. Relate ethical principles to the finance theory of the firm.

Pedagogy:
This course will be delivered via lectures, class presentations, in class debates and seminars.
The details about the course teaching, assessment and presentations will be as follows:
Online self-study: Monday 17th December to Friday 21st December 2018
Face-to-Face: 4th to 7th December 2017
Due date for assessments:
Date Activity 1 Activity 2 Assessment
Lecture Lecture/Case Study
Monday 17th
Participation
December 10 am to 11.30am 3pm to 4.30pm
Lecturer/Case Study Lecture/Case Study
Wednesday 19th
Participation
December 10 am to 11.30 am 3 pm to 4.30pm
Group Group
Friday 21st Presentation/Debate Presentation/Debate
December Group
10am to 11.30 am 3 pm to 4.30 pm
Total Pass/fail

Course material:
There is no required textbook for this course. All learning material will be provided a week before
this course is scheduled to start.
However, students wanting to gain prior understanding of the issues in the ethics in business, are
recommended to read the following:
Boatwright, J. R. (2012). Ethics in Finance (3rd Ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ferrell, O. C., Fraedrich, J. and Ferrell, L. (2015). Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and
Cases. Canada: Cengage Learning.

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Course prerequisites:
There are no prerequisites for this course. However, based on the intensive teaching and
assessment criteria that are sent for this course, it is recommended that students that are able to
cope with the workload are the ones that are allowed to enroll.
Evaluation scheme:
1 Individual Essay
You are required to undertake research and submit an essay (maximum length 1500 words) on the
following topic: “Financial institutions and markets have become more unethical since
deregulation”
Essay need to have: (1) Cover page, (2) Table of Contents, (3) Abstract, (4) Introduction, (5)
Discussion, (6) Conclusion, and (7) References using referencing style required by the muster
Finance Centre. You should compare and contrast different financial institutions and markets and
discuss the cases of unethical behavior. You should relate to theories and also discuss empirical
evidence.
[Preferably you should use Times Roman 12 font size, Headings should be 14 font size and bold.
Line spacing should be 1.5. The paper should use left and right 2.5cm margin and be fully justified.
Page numbering is required].
2 Group
A list of case studies/Journal Articles will be provided. Students will be divided into groups and
will be able to choose a case study and journal article to analyze and present to the class. The
material provided for each case is basic and you are required to undertake an in-depth research
regarding the background and recent developments relating to the case study being explored.

Evaluation Component Type (Individual/Group) Weightage Remarks, if any

Essay Individual 40% na
Participation/Presentation/Debate Group 60% na

Attendance requirement:
100% attendance is required for the course. A student not meeting the attendance requirement will
not get credit for the course. Under specified exigent circumstances, the programme committee
can waive off attendance up to 25%.
Session-wise course outline:
Details will be provided closer to the start date.

Additional references:

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None
Any other information: None
About the instructor: