Finance

1. The three financial statements and how they link
2. Excel for finance: modeling best practice
3. The integrated three-statement model
4. Financial analysis and ratios
5. Free cash flows and the cost of capital
6. The full DCF
7. Relative valuation: trading comps and precedent transactions
8. Synthesis: football field and presentation

Key labs

• Three-statement linker
• Spot the error: model audit
• Debt, revolver and circularity

1. Recruiting: roles, timeline, CV and networking
2. Fit and storytelling
3. Technical questions: accounting
4. Technical questions: valuation and DCF
5. Technical questions: M&A and LBO
6. Mental math, brain teasers and numerical tests
7. Consulting case interviews
8. PE case study, paper LBO, final round and offer

Key labs

• Technical interview simulator
• Timed case interview
• Market sizing

1. Excel for finance: best practice and financial functions
2. Data in Excel: lookups, aggregations, pivot tables
3. Scenarios, sensitivities and automation in Excel
4. Python for finance: the fundamentals
5. Price series, returns and risk
6. Monte Carlo simulation
7. Backtesting a strategy
8. Automating analysis and reporting
9. Generative AI in finance work

Key labs

• Excel financial functions
• Lookups and pivot tables
• Data tables and Goal Seek

1. Strategy and value creation in M&A
2. The sale process (sell-side)
3. Valuing a target in M&A
4. The merger model: accretion and dilution
5. Due diligence
6. Structuring the deal and negotiating the SPA
7. Regulation: merger control, takeovers, regulated sectors
8. Negotiate, integrate, deliver: capstone case

Key labs

• Offer price and football field
• Synergy plan and integration tracker
• Merger model: accretion-dilution

1. The private equity business and fund economics
2. Measuring performance: IRR, MOIC and fund metrics
3. Investment thesis, deal process and due diligence
4. Structuring and sizing the debt
5. The LBO model
6. Value creation
7. Exits
8. Investment memo, committee and private equity in Africa

Key labs

• Waterfall & carried interest
• IRR, MOIC & fund metrics
• Quality of earnings & equity price

1. The credit job and the credit process
2. Financial analysis for lenders
3. Debt capacity and cash flow
4. Credit products and security
5. Trade finance
6. Internal rating and credit risk measurement
7. Structuring, covenants, credit memo and committee
8. Monitoring, problem loans, regulation and African SMEs

Key labs

• Operating cycle & working capital
• Debt capacity
• 13-week cash flow

1. The venture capital ecosystem
2. Unit economics & metrics
3. Valuing a startup
4. Financing instruments
5. The term sheet
6. Cap tables and multi-round dilution
7. Due diligence and the investment decision
8. Portfolio, funds and exits

Key labs

• Unit economics & cohorts
• VC method & valuation
• Four-round cap table with a SAFE

1. The FP&A role and performance fundamentals
2. Cost accounting: absorption, variable and ABC costing
3. Break-even, leverage and cost-volume-profit analysis
4. The budget
5. Forecasting and rolling forecasts
6. Variance analysis
7. Working capital, cash and the 3-year strategic plan
8. KPIs, dashboards, business partnering and the executive committee

Key labs

• Budget & rolling forecast
• Price, volume & mix variance analysis
• Absorption, variable and ABC costing

1. Real estate as an asset class and its markets
2. Property cash flows: from the lease to NOI
3. Valuing a building
4. Financing a building: debt
5. The acquisition model and the investment decision
6. Real estate development
7. Structuring: joint ventures, funds and listed REITs
8. Real estate in Africa and due diligence

Key labs

• From rent to NOI
• Valuing a building
• Debt, DSCR and leverage

1. Financial markets and their players
2. Financial mathematics
3. Bonds and the yield curve
4. Equities and valuation
5. Derivatives
6. Portfolio theory, CAPM and factors
7. Asset management: funds, allocation and performance
8. Risk management, compliance and careers

Key labs

• Trading floor: the order book
• Valuing a stock
• Futures: forward price, margins and hedging

1. The role of banks: intermediation and money creation
2. The UEMOA and CEMAC banking systems: BCEAO, BEAC, banking commissions, monetary policy
3. Banking business lines: retail, corporate, investment, markets, asset management
4. A bank’s balance sheet and income statement (revised banking chart of accounts)
5. Net banking income, cost-income ratio, cost of risk and return on equity
6. Banking risks and the spirit of the Basel accords
7. Economic & financial analysis: analysing and comparing banks like an analyst
8. Digital banking, fintechs and mobile money: the new competition

Key labs

• Money creation & the multiplier
• Central bank, reserves & refinancing
• Revenue & return by business line

1. The retail customer: segmentation, journey and customer knowledge
2. Deposits, savings and payment instruments
3. Personal lending: consumer credit, mortgages, scoring
4. SME and micro-business banking: needs, working-capital and investment loans
5. Microfinance institutions and financial inclusion
6. Mobile money, banking agents and digital banking
7. Economic & financial analysis: branch, customer and product profitability
8. Advisory selling, complaints and consumer protection

Key labs

• Segments & customer value
• Savings & deposit margin
• Amortisation, APR & usury

1. The back office: accounts, value dates and the processing chain
2. Payment systems: STAR-UEMOA, SICA, GIM-UEMOA, SWIFT
3. Cheques, credit transfers, direct debits and payment incidents
4. Trade finance: Incoterms, documentary collections and letters of credit
5. Bank guarantees and bonds
6. FX, repatriation and exchange control
7. Economic & financial analysis: operation cost, pricing and fees
8. Operational risk, controls and business continuity

Key labs

• Value dates & overdraft charges
• A clearing day
• Cheques, transfers & SWIFT

1. The framework: FATF, uniform AML/CFT law, financial intelligence units, international sanctions
2. KYC: identification, beneficial owner, PEPs, risk-based approach
3. Transaction monitoring and suspicious transaction reports
4. Sanctions, embargoes and screening
5. Bribery, fraud, conflicts of interest and ethics
6. Data and customer protection
7. Economic & financial analysis: the cost of compliance versus sanction risk
8. Organising compliance: risk mapping, ongoing control, audit

Key labs

• Mutual evaluation & grey list
• KYC file for a company
• Spotting suspicious transactions

1. Project finance fundamentals
2. The project contracts
3. The project finance model
4. Debt sizing
5. Renewables: resource and technology
6. Financing structure: lenders, guarantees, currency and returns
7. Bankability, due diligence and the term sheet
8. Infrastructure PPPs, project life and restructuring

Key labs

• Risk allocation matrix
• Negotiating a PPA with the utility
• Construction: drawdowns, IDC, delays and overruns

1. Financial distress: understanding and spotting it
2. 13-week cash flow and liquidity
3. Claim priority and value by tranche
4. Restructuring options
5. Proceedings: OHADA and Chapter 11
6. Valuation in restructuring
7. Distressed debt investing
8. Negotiation and turnaround plan: the full case

Key labs

• Distress signals & covenants
• 13-week cash flow
• Value waterfall & recoveries

1. Why regulate banks: crises and the Basel accords
2. Own funds: CET1, AT1, Tier 2
3. Credit risk: standardised and internal ratings approaches
4. Market risk and operational risk
5. Liquidity (LCR, NSFR) and leverage ratio
6. The UMOA and CEMAC prudential framework and reporting
7. Economic & financial analysis: capital planning and ICAAP
8. Stress tests, recovery and resolution

Key labs

• Calculating risk-weighted assets
• A bank’s solvency ratio
• Capital stress test

1. Risk governance and risk appetite
2. Credit risk: PD, LGD, EAD and expected loss
3. IFRS 9 provisioning: the three stages and expected credit losses
4. Concentration and portfolio risk
5. Market risk: sensitivities and VaR
6. Operational risk, fraud and cyber
7. Economic & financial analysis: risk-adjusted pricing (RAROC)
8. Models, data and validation

Key labs

• Expected loss of a portfolio
• IFRS 9 staging and provisions
• Historical VaR

1. The bank balance sheet through the ALM lens
2. Interest-rate risk: gaps and economic value sensitivity
3. Liquidity risk: gaps, liquidity buffer, funding plan
4. Funds transfer pricing (FTP)
5. The money market and central bank facilities
6. Hedging: interest-rate and currency swaps
7. Economic & financial analysis: net interest margin and income simulation
8. The ALCO and balance-sheet steering

Key labs

• Interest-rate and liquidity gaps
• Funds transfer pricing curve
• Net interest margin simulation

1. Corporate and investment banking: business lines and clients
2. Capital markets: bond issues and public offerings
3. Syndicated loans
4. Acquisition and leveraged finance
5. Commodity finance (cocoa, cotton, oil)
6. Securitisation and asset-backed finance
7. Economic & financial analysis: deal profitability for the bank
8. Documentation, negotiation and execution

Key labs

• Structuring a bond issue
• Syndicating a loan
• Pre-financing a cocoa campaign

1. Taking the helm: diagnosing the bank
2. Commercial strategy and budget
3. Lending policy and risks
4. Capital, liquidity and compliance
5. Crises and decisions under pressure
6. Economic & financial analysis: profitability, value and the shareholder report
7. Executive committee and final defence

Key labs

• Eight-quarter simulation
• Annual report and defence