Swaps Fundamentals

Intermediate Swaps course overview

This Intermediate Swaps course walks you through the overview of swaps and the different types of swaps traded by investors and institutions for various purposes. We will compare the structure and uses of the different swaps, as well as to demonstrate the calculations of cash flows, pricing, and swap values using examples. We will define some of the most important terminology used in swap contracts such as swap rate, swap spread, and swap curve. We will also show you how swap contracts would look like on a Bloomberg screen and the key information one could find.

Intermediate Swaps learning objectives

Upon completing this course, you will be able to:

• Understand the overall mechanics and structure of swaps, who and why use different types of swaps, as well as pricing, payments, and valuation of swaps
• Compare and contrast the various types of swaps including:
  • Interest rate swaps
  • Currency swaps
  • Equity swaps
  • Commodity swaps
  • Basis swaps
  • Swaptions
  • Variance swaps
  • Credit default swaps (CDS)
• Explain the structure and key features of each type of swaps
• Identify the benefits and risks associated with each type of swaps
• Calculate the price and values of each type of swaps

Intermediate Swaps is an elective course of CFI’s CMSA® program

CFI’s Capital Markets & Securities Analyst (CMSA)® program covers all the basic, intermediate, and advanced topics about sales and trading, investment banking, and asset management. This program teaches you trading strategies used in the finance and capital markets industry. It is ideal for students who want to learn how to trade different asset classes. The program is completely online so you can take it at your own pace, from anywhere in the world.

Common career paths for students who take the CMSA® are Sales & Trading, Asset Management, Wealth Management, Treasury, Risk Management, and other capital markets careers.

Who should take this CMSA® course?

This Intermediate Swaps course is perfect for anyone who would like to build up their understanding about capital markets. This course is designed to equip anyone who desires to begin a career in fixed income, equity, sales and trading, or other areas of finance.