Finance Major & Tracks

WHY STUDY FINANCE?

The finance sector is one of the key pillars of the Singapore economy, contributing 14% to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2022. Singapore is the region’s leading financial hub and a hotspot for global financial organisations that seek to establish an Asian presence. The finance sector also accounts for more than half of the cumulative foreign direct investments (FDI) in Singapore up to 2021. The sector employs about 200,000 residents, which is a significant part of Singapore’s professional workforce. Going forward, job opportunities in the sector will be expanded by the advances in Financial Technology (FinTech) and Asia’s growth. In its latest estimates by MAS in Sep 2022, there will be a creation of up to 20,000 new Finance jobs in Singapore’s financial sector in 5 years. According to Ministry of Manpower, the financial and insurance services industry is the one with the highest median gross monthly income of $8,190 in 2022, compared to the overall median of $5,070 (https://stats.mom.gov.sg/Pages/IncomeTimeSeries.aspx)

OTHER RECENT NEWS ON FINANCE JOBS

16 January 2024: Blackstone to expand private equity headcount in Singapore in South-east Asia push
30 November 2023: Singapore banks make headway on programmable digital money trials
27 November 2023: Singapore companies, banks remain financially resilient even as borrowing costs rise: MAS
10 November 2023: Singapore bank OCBC raises 2023 target, third-quarter net profit beats forecast
5 November 2023: Singapore's largest bank DBS beats forecast, quarterly profit jumps 17%
26 October 2023: UOB sees stronger loan and fee growth in 2024; Q3 core net profit up 5%
25 October 2023: JP Morgan targets non-US expansion with eye on unicorns in Singapore
25 Aug 2023: Barclays banks on Singapore wealth flows, sees opportunity in global market volatility
22 Aug 2023: Citi Private Bank bullish about 2023, growth in ultrahigh-net-worth clients mainly from S'pore
3 July 2023: Singapore's OCBC Bank eyes expansion in China, Southeast Asia to tap growing demand for wealth management
27 Feb 2023: Singapore banks wrap up 2022 with record earnings, still positive on outlook for 2023
20 Feb 2023: In the most recent undergraduate employment survey released in Feb 2023, the mean gross monthly salary of SMU graduates in full-time permanent jobs is $4,896 in 2022 ($4,358 in 2021). The top three industries of employment for SMU graduates were “Financial and Insurance”, “Information & Communication”, and “Legal, Accounting and Auditing”.
21 Oct 2022: Singapore's asset management sector surges to record as funds expand
15 Sep 2022: Singapore to create up to 20,000 finance jobs in five years
15 Sep 2022: Govt unveils transformation plan for financial sector to add at least 3,000 jobs a year
07 Jul 2022: Rising US rates to boost Singapore bank earnings towards pre-Covid levels
27 May 2022: MAS calling for study on jobs, skills needed for green practices in finance sector
19 May 2022: Singapore's financial sector on hiring spree, with a third of over 9,400 new jobs in tech: MAS chief
16 Feb 2022: In the most recent undergraduate employment survey released in Feb 2022, the mean gross monthly salary of SMU graduates in full-time permanent jobs is $4,358 in 2021 ($4,196 in 2020). The top three industries of employment for SMU graduates were “Financial and Insurance”, “Information & Communication”, and “Legal, Accounting and Auditing”, with “Financial and Insurance” maintaining its position as the highest paid industry with a mean gross monthly salary of $5,107 in 2021.
10 Jan 2022: JPMorgan to boost Asia private banking headcount by over 100 this year

UNDERGRADUATE FINANCE MAJOR

Slides from Know Thy Major Talk on 25 January 2024

At SMU, the undergraduate Finance Major is well-designed to equip you with the relevant industry skills and knowledge so that you will be ready to take on a career in the sector. The Finance Major gives you room to pursue specialised tracks within Finance such as Finance Analytics, Real Estate, Wealth Management, International Trading, and Banking. Students who graduate with a Finance Major will enjoy numerous employment opportunities, whether in the finance sector (which employs the largest number of SMU undergraduates), or in other sectors like business and management consulting, retail trade, etc.

THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE UNDERGRADUATE FINANCE MAJOR

You must take:

Corporate Finance (FNCE201)
Corporate Reporting and Financial Analysis (ACCT201)
Financial Markets and Investments (FNCE102) (This course replaces the old FNCE102 FIIM)
3 Finance electives
CFA100 Ethics and Standards Practice for Investment Management (non-credit)

As of 28 July 2022, all students are eligible to major in Finance as the minimum grade criteria has been removed.

For Non-BBM students taking Finance as a second major, please refer to this PDF file.

FINANCE COURSE OFFERING

Please click here for finance course schedule and their descriptions.

TRACKS UNDER THE FINANCE MAJOR

All SMU undergraduates who have declared Finance as their first or second major are eligible to do one of the five tracks listed below.

Please see below for track requirements (applicable for AY2019/2020 intake onwards). For intakes before AY2019/2020, please see pdf file for the requirements.