Assessment Brief

Read this assessment brief carefully, it tells you how you are going to be assessed,
how to submit your assessment on-time and how (and when) you’ll receive your
marks and feedback.

Module Code AFE_5_FDW

Module Title Finance in a Digital World
Lecturer Vijay Lee
Coursework counts for 60% of the marks for the
module, and this group assignment counts for 90%
of the coursework mark. [The other 10% is for
% of Module Mark successful completion of Bloomberg Market
Concepts (BMC) certificate - 2½% for successful
completion of each of 4 modules: economic
indicators; currency; fixed income and equities].
Distributed 01/02/23
Submission Method Submit online via this module’s Moodle site
Submission
24/03/23, 14:00
Deadline
Release of Feedback will be available online from 08/05/23 [i.e.
Feedback after 15 working days from the submission date]
Provisional marks will be available in the
Release of Marks
Gradebook on Moodle from 08/05/23

Assessment:
A report showing knowledge and understanding of fundamental concepts in
financial asset valuation, demonstrating relevant professional skills in
analysing and presenting financial information using basic business software
such as Microsoft Word and Excel. The assignment will require students to
access relevant information sources including web sites dedicated to
providing current or historical financial data. Group work required for the
assignment develops team working skills - survey reports indicate
that employers consider team-working to be the most important skill that
graduate job applicants should possess.

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Assessment Details:
(See “Group Coursework Assignment” below for full details)
Type: Report
Resources: See the group coursework assignment (pages 4-6
below), lecture/seminar materials, & chapter 6 of
Zutter & Smart (or Gitman & Zutter) or similar text.

Word Count: 2,500 max. (Footnotes will not count towards word count
totals but must only be used for referencing, not for the
provision of additional text. The bibliography will not count
towards the word total).
Presentation: See the group coursework assignment below.
Referencing: Harvard Referencing should be used, see your Library
Subject Guide for guides and tips on referencing.
Regulations: Make sure you understand the University Regulations on
expected academic practice and academic misconduct.
Note in particular:
▪ Your work must be your own. Markers will be
attentive to both the plausibility of the sources
provided as well as the consistency and approach to
writing of the work. Simply, if you do the research and
reading, and then write it up on your own, giving the
reference to sources, you will approach the work in
the appropriate way and will not give markers reason
to question the authenticity of the work.
▪ All quotations must be credited and properly
referenced. Paraphrasing is still regarded as plagiarism
if you fail to acknowledge the source for the ideas being
expressed.

TURNITIN: When you upload your work to the Moodle

site it will be checked by anti-plagiarism software.

Learning Outcomes
The following are the learning outcomes for this module – the relevant learning
outcomes assessed by this assignment are highlighted in green:

• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of fundamental principles of finance,

managing finance in a digital world and the nature and role of financial markets.
• Evaluate the merits, limitations and practical applications of various financial
decision making techniques that have been developed from these principles.
• Apply the principles, tools and techniques of finance in the analysis and
interpretation of diverse financial information, and the making of investment and
financing decisions.
• Explain the features and characteristics of machine learning, artificial intelligence,
blockchain and big data within the finance industry.

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The following standard LSBU UG marking criteria will be relevant in the
marking of this assignment:
➢ Subject Knowledge – understanding and application of subject knowledge;
contribution to subject debate.
➢ Critical Analysis: Analysis and interpretation of sources, literature and/or
results.
➢ Practical Competence: Skills to apply theory to practice or to test theory.
➢ Communication and presentation: Clear intention in communication;
audience needs are predicted and met; presentation format is used skilfully;
work is well structured.
➢ Academic integrity: Acknowledges and gives credit to the work of others;
follows the conventions and practices of the discipline including appropriate
use of referencing standards.
➢ Collaborative working: Demonstration of behaviour appropriate to the
discipline, including individual contribution to team or working with others in
teams.
➢ Data literacy: Competence in working ethically with data including data
access, data extraction, interpretation and representation.

Requirement Marking criteria Marks

(see CW brief,
pages 5-6)
1. Part A Quality of analysis, interpretation and presentation of 30
financial data; understanding and application of
subject knowledge, clarity of communication.
2. Part B Quality of analysis, interpretation and presentation of 25
financial data; understanding and application of
subject knowledge, clarity of communication.
3. Part C Quality of analysis, interpretation and presentation of 40
financial data; understanding and application of
subject knowledge, clarity of communication.
4. Planning & Evidence of researching, referencing, planning, 5
organization organising and teamworking skills.

TOTAL 100

How to get help

The module leader will discuss this Assessment Brief in the lecture. Any
queries from individual students or groups will, if appropriate, be responded to
by the module leader only in the lecture or via Moodle, so that the responses
are available to all students.

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 AFE-5-FDW Finance in a Digital World

Group Coursework Assignment 2022-23

The deadline for submission of this coursework is Friday, 24th March 2023.
This assignment is meant to be done in groups. Please note the following
important information:
➢ The coursework relates to the first four weeks of lessons and is meant to
be started after students have completed the week 4 topic (Bond
Valuation). But meanwhile it is important for the coursework groups to be
set up.
➢ Students are required to form their own groups and advise the module
leader the names of the group members by 6th February 2023 – the
module leader will create the different coursework groups on the module
Moodle site, which will also have a forum for intra-group discussion
between each group’s members (visible only to the members of that
group, and to the module teaching team).
➢ To best achieve one of the key learning outcomes of this course
(development of team-working skills), each group should ideally have at
least 3 and no more than 5 members. Exceptionally 6 members may be
permitted, but this is not recommended. Group members can be drawn
from any seminar or course, not necessarily from the same seminar group
or from the same course.
➢ Students who choose not to join or form groups on their own and are
happy to work in a group with random members, must give their names to
the module leader by 10th February. These students – and any others who
have not yet formed or joined any groups – will be randomly put into
groups by the module leader. They will need to complete the coursework
by working as a team with the other assigned members of the group.
➢ Students who do not participate in the work of a group should not expect
the members of that group to include their name in the group submission –
in which case they will not be eligible to share the coursework mark with
those members of the group who do participate, and they will have to
complete and submit the coursework on their own. Any student whose
name is not included in the submission of their group will be deemed to
have not submitted the coursework.
➢ The ‘Estimate of individual contribution to group report’ form (attached) is
only required IF the group members have agreed to share the mark for the
report unequally – in which case it must be individually signed in
confirmation by ALL the group members and a photocopy of the signed
form submitted with the report. This form is meant to determine each
student’s share of the group mark (which is allowed to vary within specified
limits) – when the form is not submitted it will be assumed that the group
members have agreed to share the report mark equally.

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 Coursework Brief 2022-23: Interest Rates & Bond Valuation
Bob Hite is looking to invest some of his savings. A friend has advised him that
the current shape of the yield curve suggests it would be advisable to invest in
bonds rather than shares. Bob has decided to follow this advice and is trying to
decide between a 3-year investment in Vodafone bonds, a 7-year investment
in Tesco bonds and a 14-year investment in Aviva bonds. Based on the risk of
these companies, and the maturities of the debt, Bob’s adviser has estimated
the relevant opportunity cost of each of these instruments as:
➢ Vodafone three-year debt: 3%
➢ Tesco seven-year debt: 4%
➢ Aviva fourteen-year debt: 6%
If Bob purchases any of these bonds the purchase date would be 1 March 2023.

Bob does not understand what a yield curve means and has asked his friend to
show him how it is constructed, what it means, and what determines its shape.

Required:

A. Go to the website of London Stock Exchange:

https://www.londonstockexchange.com/
Search for each of the above companies in turn and find relevant
information on the following securities issued by them:
➢ Vodafone 5.625% bonds maturing 4 December 2025
➢ Tesco 6% bonds maturing 14 December 2029
➢ Aviva 6.125% bonds maturing 14 November 2036
Based on Bob’s estimated opportunity cost for each of the above
investments, evaluate which (if any) of these bonds would be a
worthwhile investment. Perform this evaluation in two different ways:
(i) First by valuing each bond on the basis of the relevant
opportunity cost.
(ii) Then by estimating the rate of return (yield to maturity) the bond
is offering based on London Stock Exchange’s current offer price.
(30 marks)

B. How would the values of these three bonds change if Bob’s required
rate of return (i.e. his opportunity cost):
(i) Increased by 2 percentage points
(ii) Decreased by 2 percentage points

Explain the implications of your answer, both graphically and in

words.
(25 marks)

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C. Go to the UK Government Bonds page of the Bloomberg website:
https://www.bloomberg.com/markets/rates-bonds/government-
bonds/uk

(i) Using the latest information relating to 2-year, 5-year, 10-year

and 30-year UK Gilts, construct the Yield Curve of UK
Government Bonds on Excel.

(ii) Explain the significance of the yield curve to investors.

(iii) Explain the main theories of the term structure of interest rates.

(40 marks)

A total of 95 marks as indicated above will be awarded for showing

knowledge and understanding of the subject PLUS relevant professional
skills such as expertise in producing and writing reports containing
financial analysis, using basic business software such as Word/Excel.

A further 5 marks will be awarded for demonstration of planning &

organizational skills – evidence of background reading, following the
requirements of the assignment, teamworking, (evidenced by minutes of
meetings, or screenshots of group conversations, or use of the forum
provided on Moodle for intra-group discussion), etc.

Please note the following:

 Completed assignments should be submitted at the Coursework
Submission point on the module Moodle site.
 Demonstration of appropriate Excel skills is expected, so feel free
to upload Excel file(s) in addition to the main report on Word.
 The main report must be word-processed and word-counted, and
the number of words clearly indicated on the cover sheet.
 The maximum permissible word limit is 2,500 - reports which
exceed this limit will be penalised. (Undershooting by 10-15% is
acceptable, as concise and pithy reports can often be excellent;
what is more important than the sheer number of words is the
quality and clarity of understanding that is demonstrated).
 Since the coursework groups will be set up on Moodle it is not
necessary for each group member to separately submit the
assignment – it is enough if any one member of the group
uploads the finished work (however, the person submitting
should please make sure that it is the correct final version, and
that the other group members have agreed it may be submitted!)
 When you take market information from any website please
reference it suitably, including the date on which you took the
information.

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 ESTIMATE OF INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTION TO GROUP WRITTEN REPORT
[This form is only required to be submitted if group members all agree to share
the mark unequally between themselves – otherwise please ignore this form]

No. Name of group Percentage Signature of

Member contribution to member
group report

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

TOTAL 100
Note: · If there are 3 members in a group an equal contribution would be 33.33% each.
· If there are 4 members in a group an equal contribution would be 25% each.
· If there are 5 members in a group, an equal contribution would be 20% each.
· If there are 6 members in a group, an equal contribution would be 16.67% each.
· Variations from these levels are permissible for individual group members up to
a maximum limit of ± 4% only for a 3-person group, ± 3% only for a 4-person
group, ± 2.4% only for a 5-person group or 2.05% for a 6-person group.
· Here is an example of how it might work for a 4-person group:
A 4-member group's report is awarded a mark of 65%. Therefore the aggregate marks
for the four members are 65 x 4 = 260. The group agrees that John takes 3% extra share
(maximum), by Ringo surrendering a corresponding share of 3%.

No. Name of group Percentage Mark awarded for

Member contribution to report
group effort
1. John Lennon 28% 73
2. Paul McCartney 25% 65
3. George Harrison 25% 65
4. Ringo Starr 22% 57
TOTAL 100% 260

As can be seen, the maximum variation in contribution of 3% can result in a fairly

substantial variation in the marks granted to the individual. [Note that John may also
have the extra 3% by (for example) Paul, George and Ringo each surrendering 1% share.
It is for the group members to democratically agree between themselves how they would like
the marks to be shared].