Overview/Description Insurance is a form of risk management for individuals, families, and organizations, and even for insurers themselves through reinsurance. Life and health insurance companies offer their products so that the insured – the policyholders – can have peace of mind and protection from the inevitable consequences of life, such as personal injury, disability, health care costs, and death. This course presents a high-level view of key products and services associated with life, health care, long-term care, disability, and general insurance for individuals and organizations....

Overview/Description Mutual funds are pools of money that investment experts professionally manage through investments in various securities such as stocks and bonds. The global acceptance of mutual funds is due to the ability of vast number of smaller investors to have their money professionally invested and offer a high degree of diversification and liquidity. There are many types of mutual fund, which allows investors to choose those that best fit their circumstances, for example, high risk-high return, low risk-low return, specific sector investments, global investments, fixed income,...

Overview/Description Over the past few decades the mutual fund industry has seen extreme swings in performance, resulting in dramatic changes in the value of investors' portfolios. The risk versus return dynamics of a mutual fund must be carefully analyzed by any investor. The investors must consider whether the type of mutual fund they are about to invest in is appropriate for their objectives. In order to do so, the investor should assess the fund's historical return and the amount of risk that the fund has taken to achieve that return, as well as other critical factors. To assess all this...

Overview/Description Internal controls and strong corporate governance lead to effective and efficient bank operations in which risks are properly managed and depositors' assets are safeguarded. These best practices ensure that stakeholders can put their trust in the financial system. The banking crisis and rapid growth of the banking industry at the beginning of the 21st century created the need for banks to develop strong internal controls and establish good corporate governance. Banks must be audited, both internally and externally, to assess the state of internal controls and corporate...