QFA Investment case studies

QFA Investment · Put your knowledge to work in context.

QFA Certificate in Professional Financial Advice is one of the professional qualifications offered by LIA, an educational and professional association for individuals working in the financial services industry in Ireland. It sits in LIA's professional qualification suite, which spans Level 7 to Level 9 on the National Framework of Qualifications, and LIA delivers its courses in partnership with Atlantic Technological University Sligo. The qualification is aimed at advisers, planners and support staff who need a structured, technical grounding in investment advice rather than a specialist research or trading skill set. The programme is built from six modules, and the syllabus areas assessed are investment products and savings vehicles; asset classes, markets and the economic environment; portfolio construction, risk and return; and the regulation, taxation and client suitability rules that frame advice. The QFA Investment case studies are 5 cases and about 4,918 words.

The Maturing Deposit: Wrapper Choice and the €100,000 Question

Sinead, 58, is a PAYE employee taxed at the higher rate. A €180,000 deposit with a single Irish bank matures next month; it currently earns 2.10% gross.

996 words, about 5 min 2

Duration, Carry and the 'Paper Loss' Argument

A 63-year-old client holds €400,000 in a euro investment-grade corporate bond fund. Modified duration is 7.2 years, yield to maturity 3.40%, average credit spread 110 basis points.

893 words, about 4 min 3

Adding a Real Asset Sleeve: Does the Sharpe Ratio Survive the Assumptions?

A client's €1,200,000 portfolio is 70% global equity / 30% euro investment-grade bonds. Capital-market assumptions: equity expected return 7.25%, volatility 15%; bonds 2.90%, volatility 5%; correlation between them −0.10.

881 words, about 4 min 4

A 71-Year-Old, a 'No Risk' Instruction and a High-Yield Bond Fund

Margaret is 71 and a widow. She holds €450,000 on deposit at 1.20%.

1,078 words, about 5 min 5

Preserving Purchasing Power: Nominal Bonds, Linkers and the Breakeven

Eoin holds €300,000: €120,000 in cash at 1.90% and €180,000 in a euro aggregate nominal bond fund yielding 3.10% with duration 6.0. He plans to buy a property abroad in five years and wants to preserve purchasing power in the meantime, but says he is "not willing to accept a capital loss".

1,070 words, about 5 min