Chapter 1 Flashcards
(36 cards)
What is the role of the financial services sector in economies?
It links organisations needing capital with those having capital for investment and is crucial in both advanced and developing economies.
What are the three core functions of the financial services sector?
Investment Chain, Risk, and Payment Systems.
Describe the concept of the investment chain.
It is a framework illustrating the flow of capital from savers to businesses in financial markets, connecting savers with businesses seeking capital.
How does the financial services sector manage risk?
Through pooling investment risks, insurance for unforeseen events, and sophisticated derivatives for managing market uncertainties.
What is the significance of payment systems in the financial services sector?
They are critical for managing money, facilitating transactions, and enabling international trade and investment.
What does the Global Financial Centres Index evaluate?
It assesses the rankings and future competitiveness of financial centers based on business environment, human capital, infrastructure, financial sector development, and reputation.
What is the difference between the wholesale and retail sectors in finance?
Wholesale (professional or institutional) sector involves large-scale trading and financial services, while the retail sector focuses on services provided to individual customers.
What are equity markets and their significance?
Equity markets, or stock markets, facilitate the trading of company shares and are crucial for raising capital and investment.
What role do bond markets play in finance?
They enable governments and companies to raise debt finance directly from investors and facilitate secondary trading of debt securities.
Describe the Foreign Exchange (FX) markets.
FX markets are global marketplaces for currency exchange and are vital for international trade and managing currency risks.
What are derivatives markets?
Markets where financial products based on underlying assets like currencies, indices, and commodities are traded, used for hedging and speculation.
What is the role of insurance markets?
They specialize in managing personal and corporate risks and are significant investors in equity and bond markets.
What services are provided by investment banks?
They offer finance-raising and advisory work, securities trading, treasury dealing for corporate clients in currencies, and investment management for investors, pension funds, and high net worth individuals (HNWIs).
What are the primary functions of custodian banks?
Custodian banks specialize in safekeeping investments like shares and bonds, arranging settlements of securities transactions, asset servicing, managing cash transactions, performing FX transactions, and providing regular portfolio reporting.
What services do retail/commercial banks provide?
They offer deposit and lending services to retail customers, payment and money transmission services, and often other financial products like investments, pensions, and insurance.
How do savings institutions differ from traditional banks?
Savings institutions, like credit unions and building societies, are typically member-owned and focus on serving their depositors and borrowers, often described as ‘mutual societies’ or ‘mutual savings banks’.
What is peer-to-peer lending and how does it work?
P2P lending connects individuals or businesses seeking loans with investors willing to lend money, bypassing traditional financial institutions and allowing for direct lending and borrowing through online platforms.
What is crowdfunding and what are its forms?
Crowdfunding involves raising funds for a project or venture from a large number of people and can take forms like donations, debt crowdfunding, and equity crowdfunding.
What roles do insurance companies play in the financial market?
They provide a variety of products for protection planning and risk management, ranging from payment protection policies to fleet insurance, and are major investors in equity and bond markets.
What is the role of pension funds in financial markets?
Pension funds are key methods for retirement planning, investing substantial sums in shares, bonds, and cash to provide pensions upon retirement.
What do fund managers do?
Fund managers manage portfolios of investments for institutional investors and individuals, aiming to increase the value of their clients’ portfolios through strategic buying and selling of assets.
What services do stockbrokers and wealth managers offer?
They arrange stock market trades, offer investment advice, provide wealth management services ranging from execution-only to fully managed services, and cater to diverse investor profiles.
What are investment platforms and their benefits?
Investment platforms are online services that enable financial advisers to manage clients’ portfolios, offering tools for analysis, trading, and custody, thus simplifying back office operations and execution.
What services do private banks offer?
Private banks provide wealth management, estate planning, tax planning, insurance, lending, and lines of credit, mainly targeted at high net worth individuals (HNWIs).
