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Singapore elective gets underway

Cass students have flown in to Singapore for an intensive weekend elective that gets underway today. MSc and EMBA students have travelled to Asia's wealth management capital for a four day elective on monetary policy.

The elective, which was launched last year, is run jointly by Cass and Singapore Management University's (SMU) highly-rated Lee Kong Chian School of Business. This year will also see students from Cambridge University's Judge Business School join the elective for the first time.

MSc Programme Director Susan Roth, said: "Singapore is a key pin in our international strategy. We are delighted to be working with SMU and Judge to create new learning and networking opportunities for our students in such an important financial region. Given that many of the students on this elective are in full-time employment, they often find the trip is as important for their companies as it is for them."

Almost 50 students from Cass, SMU and Judge will take part in a series of lectures delivered by Cass Professor of Asset Management, Andrew Clare, and SMU Economics Professor, Kim Song Tam.

Among the topics they will cover include an overview of the Asian markets, the role money plays in a modern economy, the operation of monetary policy and the current challenges monetary policy faces across the globe.

The lectures will be blended with a series of seminars from top executives at two of Asia's leading financial institutions, OCBC and UOB, together with visits to their offices on Shenton Way, Singapore's equivalent of Wall Street.

Students will also get the chance to put theory into practice with a computer simulation where they play the role of an Asian monetary authority, making a series of interest rate decisions for their virtual economy.

Dominic Loureda, from the Cass MSc in Finance and Investment, said: "This elective is an important networking opportunity given Singapore's huge financial importance. There's a possibility that we could be making money in this region or even working here which is why it's good to get to meet new contacts and exchange information and ideas."

The monetary policy elective is open to students on Cass's part-time MSc in Finance and Investment and Executive MBA courses.