This course introduces the fundamentals of fixed income securities. Topics include the features and characteristics, issuers and buyers, and the different types of fixed income instruments. The course's primary focus is on government and corporate bonds, but other fixed income securities such as money market instruments, municipal bonds, mortgaged-backed securities, and asset-backed securities are also discussed. Other important concepts are introduced, including:

• Present and future value
• Discount factors
• Interest rate sensitivity
• Credit risk concerns

By the end of the course, the course participant will be able to:

• Identify the features and characteristics of fixed income securities
• Identify the main players in each market
• Understand how debt is used by corporations and financial institutions
• Distinguish between the various instruments and the different markets
• Calculate the present and future value and the internal rate of return of a series of cash flows
• Read and interpret bond prices
• Differentiate between clean and dirty prices
• Calculate accrued interest using different market day count conventions
• Distinguish between different methodologies of calculating yields and returns
• Identify the different risks associated with debt
• Have a working knowledge of the relevant Bloomberg pages used by market practitioners

This course is targeted towards those with little or no knowledge of fixed income markets and is appropriate for anyone with an interest in this area. Delegates with only a basic business background will benefit regardless of their experience, current job function, or employer.