Oscar Byles
London, UK
ESCP·Bayes·Bocconi
BSc Banking and International Finance
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MSc Management
MastersManagement
Semester 1
Fall 2024·Paris, France·ESCP Business School
Energy, Business, Climate, Geopolitics
- Explores the fundamentals of energy systems, covering key concepts such as the difference between power and energy, and the global energy mix with a focus on fossil fuels and renewables.
- Analyzes the geopolitical implications of global energy reliance, including Europe's dependency on imported fossil fuels and the challenges in transitioning to sustainable energy.
- Examines the urgency of climate change, carbon budgeting, and the need for significant emissions reductions to meet global targets such as the Paris Agreement.
- Introduces tools like carbon accounting and participatory workshops (e.g. Climate Fresk) to evaluate emissions and promote sustainability strategies.
Marketing Research
- Focuses on how data is collected and analyzed to support strategic marketing decisions, including market segmentation and product positioning.
- Introduces qualitative methods like focus groups and ethnographic observation, and quantitative techniques such as surveys and experiments.
- Covers best practices in questionnaire design, scale development, sampling strategies, and data collection methods.
- Highlights common research pitfalls including response errors, and stresses the importance of clarity and quality control in survey design.
Business Strategy
- Introduces concepts of strategic agility and leadership, emphasizing the development of long-term vision, mission, and measurable ambitions using KPIs.
- Teaches market and competitive analysis using frameworks like Porter's Five Forces and market matrix approaches.
- Focuses on defining strategic priorities by aligning internal capabilities with external opportunities and threats, including TAM/SAM/SOM sizing.
- Emphasizes the importance of effective communication of strategic plans using formats like executive summaries and the pyramid principle.
Financial Strategy of Firms
- Explores types of mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, capital restructuring, and privatization as tools for corporate growth and focus.
- Covers how to structure optimal capital mixes through debt and equity, and evaluates projects using financial metrics like ROCE and WACC.
- Introduces the analysis of financial statements, working capital, and financial performance measures for decision-making and valuation.
- Discusses leveraged buyouts and convertible bonds, detailing their structure, valuation, and role in private equity and corporate strategy.
Applied Investment Banking
- Develops practical financial modeling skills through the construction of models for M&A, LBOs, IPOs, and valuation (DCF, comparables, precedent transactions).
- Explains valuation fundamentals including how to calculate and interpret enterprise and equity value, and the use of sensitivity analysis.
- Walks through the entire M&A process from due diligence to accretion/dilution analysis, focusing on transaction structure and integration planning.
- Explores the logic and mechanics of leveraged buyouts, emphasizing value creation through deleveraging, operational improvements, and multiple expansion.
UndergraduateBanking & International Finance
Year 2 Semester 2
Spring 2024·London, UK·Bayes Business School
ESG
- Examines how ESG factors are integrated into investment analysis and corporate strategy to align with sustainability and ethical objectives.
- Explores global ESG regulations, reporting standards, and the role of institutional investors in influencing corporate governance.
- Discusses challenges like greenwashing and how firms manage ESG risks across different industries and markets.
- Analyzes real-world ESG scoring methodologies and the impact of ESG factors on long-term financial performance.
Bank Risk Management
- Introduces the major categories of financial risk faced by banks: credit, market, operational, and liquidity risk.
- Covers tools and models for measuring and managing risk, such as Value-at-Risk (VaR), stress testing, and capital adequacy metrics.
- Explains regulatory frameworks including Basel III, and how they shape banks' capital requirements and risk control policies.
- Emphasizes the importance of risk culture, internal controls, and governance in maintaining financial system stability.
Asset Management
- Focuses on the principles of portfolio construction, asset allocation, and performance evaluation under varying market conditions.
- Covers traditional and alternative investment vehicles, and strategies used by asset managers to achieve client objectives.
- Explores fund structures, fee models, and the institutional landscape including mutual funds, hedge funds, and pension funds.
- Teaches performance metrics such as alpha, beta, Sharpe ratio, and how to assess a manager's skill versus market movements.
International Banking
- Analyzes the structure and operations of international banks, including their role in global trade, capital flows, and economic development.
- Discusses regulatory environments across jurisdictions, focusing on capital controls, AML compliance, and systemic risk management.
- Examines cross-border lending, foreign exchange risk, and the global interbank market.
- Explores the evolving landscape of global finance, including the impact of financial crises, fintech, and central bank digital currencies.
Year 2 Semester 1
Autumn 2023·Milan, Italy·Università Bocconi
Econometrics for Finance
- Introduces econometric methods used to model financial data, including regression analysis, time series models, and hypothesis testing.
- Applies quantitative techniques to real-world financial problems, such as stock return predictability and risk factor analysis.
- Covers model diagnostics, multicollinearity, autocorrelation, and stationarity—critical for accurate forecasting and decision-making.
- Emphasizes practical use of software tools (like Stata or R) to analyze large datasets and develop empirical financial models.
Management of Fashion Companies
- Explores the strategic and operational challenges specific to fashion and luxury businesses, including product lifecycle and trend forecasting.
- Examines brand management, distribution models (wholesale, retail, e-commerce), and the role of storytelling in luxury branding.
- Analyzes the balance between creativity and business discipline, particularly in managing seasonal collections and supply chains.
- Discusses international expansion strategies, consumer behaviour, and the role of heritage and innovation in sustaining competitive advantage.
Derivatives
- Focuses on the structure, pricing, and practical use of financial derivatives like forwards, futures, options, and swaps.
- Covers hedging strategies for managing risk in currency, interest rate, and commodity exposures.
- Introduces valuation techniques such as the Black-Scholes model and binomial pricing, along with real-world applications.
- Highlights the mechanics of trading, margin requirements, and risk management using derivatives in both speculative and hedging contexts.
Management Accounting
- Teaches how internal financial information supports decision-making, planning, and performance evaluation.
- Covers cost classification, budgeting, variance analysis, and the use of KPIs in business control systems.
- Explores tools like activity-based costing (ABC), contribution margin analysis, and break-even analysis.
- Emphasizes strategic cost management in competitive environments, and how accounting data informs managerial decisions.
Corporate Finance
- Builds understanding of how companies raise and allocate capital to maximize shareholder value.
- Covers financial decision-making around capital structure, investment appraisal (e.g. NPV, IRR), and risk-return tradeoffs.
- Discusses valuation methods and corporate policies like dividend distribution and share buybacks.
- Explores M&A considerations, financial distress, and the global context of financing decisions.
Year 1 Semester 2
Spring 2024·London, UK·Bayes Business School
Macroeconomics
- Introduces core macroeconomic indicators such as GDP, GNI, national income, and purchasing power parity (PPP), and how they interrelate in the circular flow of income.
- Analyzes aggregate demand (AD) and aggregate supply (AS), including key components like consumption, saving, and investment.
- Explores macroeconomic models including the accelerator theory, the spending function, and the multiplier effect to understand economic fluctuations.
- Covers government economic tools such as fiscal policy (taxation and public spending) and monetary policy, including the roles of central banks and financial regulation.
Critical Thinking & Business Skills
- Develops presentation and communication skills essential for business contexts, emphasizing clarity, persuasion, and professional delivery.
- Enhances problem-solving and logical reasoning through structured case studies, group discussions, and decision-making exercises.
- Teaches how to construct well-reasoned arguments using both qualitative and quantitative evidence.
- Builds foundational skills for academic success and business analysis, including teamwork, leadership, and self-reflection.
Financial Institutions
- Explores the architecture of the modern financial system, including financial markets, institutions, and intermediaries.
- Covers the banking business model, including reserve requirements, the credit multiplier, and key banking products and services.
- Differentiates between types of banks—retail, commercial, savings—and examines their strategic roles in the economy.
- Introduces key concepts in bank management such as capital adequacy, return on capital (ROC), economic value added (EVA), and liquidity management.
Statistics for Finance
- Provides foundational knowledge of statistical methods used in financial analysis, including probability distributions and descriptive statistics.
- Introduces inferential techniques like hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, and p-values for interpreting data.
- Teaches linear regression and correlation to analyze relationships between financial variables.
- Applies statistical tools to real financial datasets to support investment decisions and risk assessment.
1st Semester Year 1
Autumn 2022·London, UK·Bayes Business School
Microeconomics
- Introduces the fundamentals of supply and demand, market equilibrium, and elasticity in consumer and producer behavior.
- Analyzes market structures such as perfect competition, monopoly, and oligopoly, and their impact on pricing and output.
- Covers utility maximisation, cost structures, and the theory of the firm in decision-making contexts.
- Explores market failures, externalities, and the role of government intervention in correcting inefficiencies.
Finance and Investment
- Covers time value of money, interest rates, and discounting techniques fundamental to financial decision-making.
- Teaches basic valuation methods for financial instruments including bonds and equities.
- Introduces the structure and function of financial markets, the concept of market efficiency, and the basics of derivatives.
- Explores key concepts in foreign exchange, asset securitisation, and their roles in global finance.
Introductory Financial Accounting
- Develops understanding of the three core financial statements: the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement.
- Explains the principles of double-entry bookkeeping and the foundational rules of accounting.
- Covers the regulatory environment and the conceptual framework underlying financial reporting standards.
- Provides practical skills in preparing and interpreting basic financial statements for business analysis.
Mathematics for Finance
- Provides a mathematical foundation for finance, covering functions, equations, and calculus relevant to economic modeling.
- Introduces linear algebra concepts such as matrices and systems of equations used in portfolio analysis and optimisation.
- Explores differentiation and integration techniques for use in pricing models and marginal analysis.
- Emphasizes quantitative problem-solving and logical reasoning skills essential for advanced finance coursework.
Skills
Financial Markets & Trading
- Active experience trading equities using platforms like XTB and TradingView
- Self-led research into derivatives, macro trends, and geopolitical impacts on markets
Excel & Data Handling
- Advanced skills in Excel and Google Sheets for financial modelling and data analysis
- Comfortable working with large datasets and building structured financial models
Quantitative & Analytical Thinking
- Strong foundation in mathematics, statistics, and financial analysis
- Trained in valuation techniques, corporate finance, and risk modelling through university coursework
Web Development
- Build and manage websites as side projects, with working knowledge of HTML, CSS, and basic backend functions
Languages & Communication
- Fluent in English, with working knowledge of French and Italian from living and studying across Europe