Learning objectives
The course aims to provide the basic knowledge of financial instruments and intermediaries that can support agricultural enterprises and food supply chains. The financial markets and intermediaries will be deepened in order to identify the main financial instruments of investment, financing and risk management available to agricultural enterprises and food chains. At the end of the course, students will have acquired:
1) the knowledge needed to understand the characteristics and distinctive features of financial instruments, banks and other financial intermediaries that can support businesses and food chains;
2) the ability to apply the acquired knowledge to assess the convenience of the financial instruments to be used to meet the needs of investment, financing, pure and speculative risks;
3) critical capacity and independent judgement to assess the role of financial intermediaries in support of businesses and the food chain and to choose in a conscious way the instruments suitable to meet the main financial needs;
4) the ability to use appropriate technical language in exposing the topics covered and communicating with financial operators;
5) the ability to learn through the logical method of identifying problems and the critical analysis of the solutions adopted.
Prerequisites
None. It is advisable to have studied the subjects of the first year of the course.
Course unit content
The aim of the course is to deepen the role that financial markets and intermediaries play in the financial system to support businesses and food chains.
Having explained the importance of the system of regulation and supervision of the financial system, in the light of the economic and social role of agricultural enterprises and the food chain, the financial needs of the system are deepened, with particular regard to investments, financing and risk management. Specific financial instruments, including insurance instruments, aimed at covering pure risks, and derivatives, aimed at managing financial risks, particularly important in the commodities market, including agricultural ones, will therefore be examined
Full programme
1) Supervision of the financial system: objectives and authorities; 2) Instruments for the supervision of the financial system; 3) The economic and social role of agricultural enterprises and the food chain; 4) The investment needs of agricultural enterprises and food chains; 5) The financing needs of agricultural enterprises and food chains; 6) The risk management needs of agricultural enterprises and food chains; 7) Pure risk management: intermediaries and insurance financial instruments; 8) Financial risk management (with particular reference to the commodities market): financial derivatives.
Bibliography
Strumenti finanziari e creditizi, quarta edizione, 2022, a cura di Tagliavini G., Poletti L., Ronchini B., McGraw Hill.
Economia del sistema finanziario, seconda edizione, 2021, a cura di Bocchialini E., Poletti L., Ronchini B., Tagliavini G., Giappichelli Milano.
Notes indicated by the professor.
Teaching methods
a) Acquisition of knowledge: frontal lessons. During the course of the lessons will be indicated the fundamental topics of teaching, essential to pass the exam.
b) Acquisition of the ability to apply knowledge: exercises.
c) Acquisition of the autonomy of judgment: during the course students will be encouraged to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the financial instruments presented.
d) Acquisition of learning skills: for each topic we will start from the illustration of the problem to be solved and critically analyze the solutions adopted.
e) Acquisition of technical language: during the course the meaning of the terms commonly used by the financial community will be illustrated.
Assessment methods and criteria
The exam is in written form.
The acquisition of the fundamental knowledge is ascertained with 5 multiple choice questions, each of the value of 1 point (total 5 points).
The ability to apply the foreground shall be verified by a 5-point exercise.
The ability to communicate with appropriate technical language, the autonomy of judgment and the ability to learn are ascertained with 2 open questions, each of the value of 10 points (total 20
points).
During the exam it is forbidden to use notes and electronic devices of any type (smartphone, smartwatch, tablet, etc.).
The results of the exam are published in Esse3.
Praise is given to particularly deserving students who have demonstrated that they have achieved levels of excellence compared to the descriptors mentioned above (systematic knowledge of the subject, ability to apply the acquired knowledge to the specific problem, autonomy of judgment) and who have paid particular attention to the formal preparation of the test.
Other information
Slides and any additional materials will be available on the Elly platform.
