CAA A5 Reference Guide MOD 1 V1.0
CAA A5 Reference Guide MOD 1 V1.0
Certified Actuarial
Analyst Resource Guide
Module 1
2017
caa-global.org
Contents
Welcome to Module 1 3
The Certified Actuarial Analyst qualification 4
The syllabus for the Module 1 exam 5
Assessment of the Module 1 exam 5
Studying for the Module 1 exam 6
► Recommended study hours 6
► Tuition 6
► Textbooks 6
► Free online resources 6
Specimen exam paper 8
Resources available at the exam centre 8
► Calculators 8
► Making notes during the exam 9
► Formulae and Tables for actuarial examinations 9
Appendix 1 Syllabus: Module 1 – Finance and Financial Mathematics 10
Appendix 2 Specimen Examination Paper: Module 1 – Finance and Financial Mathematics 16
@
The aim of the Module 1 Finance and Financial
Mathematics exam is to provide grounding in finance and
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financial mathematics with simple applications.
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This Resource guide for Module 1 gives you the syllabus caa-global.org
you will cover for the exam, and details of some online
and other resources that will help you study for the
Module1 exam. There is also a specimen exam paper
giving examples of the type of questions you will be
asked.
In addition to passing the above exams, you must complete at least one year of relevant work
experience (Work-based skills).
You can find the full Module 1 syllabus in Appendix 1 of this Resource guide
Before you start your 2 hour exam you will have an You can sit the exam at
extra 15 minutes for: one of the many centres
worldwide managed by
• reading the exam instructions, and
Pearson VUE.
• working through some basic sample questions so
that you become familiar with the format of the exam. You can find details of
your local exam centre on
You will also need to sign a statement of confidentiality their website by using their
in relation to the exam materials. regional contact details:
Pass standards for the exam are set by CAA Global. www.pearsonvue.com/
Details of pass standards for CAA exams will be
published in due course.
Tuition
BPP Actuarial Education (ActEd),
provides online study material for this exam.
Details of their training materials and services are available on their website.
Website: www.bppacted.com
Email: [email protected]
Tel: +44 (0)1235 550 005
Please note
Education providers are listed here for information purposes. CAA Global has not
assessed the quality of the services provided.
Textbooks
Alternatively the following textbook should cover most of the content of the Module 1 syllabus.
Topic 3 – The time value of money using the concepts of compound interest and discounting
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Principles_of_Finance - Chapter 2
Topic 5 – The use of discounted cash flow techniques in investment project appraisal
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Principles_of_Finance - Chapters 2 and 4.
Please note
Only 20 sample questions are given in the Specimen exam paper. There will be a total
of 60 questions in the Module 1 exam you sit.
The questions found in the specimen paper will not be included in the Module 1 exam.
You should bring your own calculator with you to the exam. It will be checked
by exam centre staff, and the memory will be cleared.
If you bring a different calculator model it must be left in the locker with your
other personal belongings.
An on-screen scientific calculator will also be available for you to use during the exam.
However, some students have reported that they found this on-screen calculator difficult or
cumbersome to use, and so you may prefer to take your own TI-30 calculator to the exam
with you.
The TI-30 Multiview calculator is available to buy from shops or online retailers.
You will only be given one board at a time but are entitled to as many as you need during the
exam, and you will be able to keep these at your desk for the duration of the exam. You
should ask the supervisor for more if needed. The Pearson VUE staff will not provide you
with an eraser for the note boards.
The note boards will be collected by Pearson VUE staff at the end of the
exam. On occasion you may instead be given scrap paper to make notes on.
Topic 1
The key principles of finance
Indicative study and assessment weighting 5% 1
Learning objectives
(i) Define the principal terms in use in investment and asset management.
(a) the relationship between finance and the real resources and between finance and
the objectives of an organisation
(b) the relationship between the stakeholders in an organisation (including lenders and
investors)
(c) the role and effects of the capital markets
(d) agency theory
(e) the theory of the maximisation of shareholder wealth.
(i) Describe how to use a generalised cashflow model to describe financial transactions.
(a) State the inflows and outflows in each future time period
(b) Explain whether the amount or the timing (or both) is fixed or uncertain.
(c) Describe, in the form of a cashflow model, the operation of: a zero-coupon bond; a
fixed- interest security; an index-linked security; cash on deposit; an equity; an “interest-
only” loan; a repayment loan; a property; and an annuity certain.
Topic 3
The time value of money using the concepts of compound
interest and discounting
Indicative study and assessment weighting 15% 3
Learning objectives
(i) Accumulate a single investment at a constant rate of interest under the operation of:
• simple interest
• compound interest.
(iii) Describe how a compound interest model can be used to represent the effect of investing a
sum of money over a period.
(a) Define the relationship between the rates of interest and discount over one effective
period arithmetically and by general reasoning
(b) Define the relationships between the rate of interest payable once per effective
period, the rate of interest payable p times per time period and the force of
interest
(c) Explain the difference between nominal and effective rates of interest and derive
effective rates from nominal rates.
(vi) Calculate the present value and the accumulated value of a stream of payments
using specified rates of interest and the present value at a real rate of interest,
assuming a constant rate of inflation.
(vii) Discount and accumulate a sum of money or a series (possibly infinite) of cashflows
to any point in time where:
(viii) Calculate the present value and accumulated value of a series of payments made at regular
intervals under the operation of specific rates of interest where the first payment is:
(ix) Apply the more important compound interest functions including annuities certain:
(a) Apply formulae in terms of i, v, n, d, δ, i(p) and d(p) for a , s , a
n n
( p)
n , s n( p ) , a n ,
a ( p ) and m a n .
m n
(x) Calculate quantities using an equation of value, where payment or receipt is certain.
(i) Describe how a loan may be repaid by regular instalments of interest and capital.
(iii) Calculate a schedule of repayments under a loan and identify the interest and capital
components of annuity payments where the annuity is used to repay a loan for the case
where annuity payments are made once per effective time period or p times per effective
time period/ and identify the capital outstanding at any time.
Topic 5
Use of discounted cashflow techniques in
investment project appraisal
Indicative study and assessment weighting 20% 5
Learning objectives
(i) Calculate the net present value and accumulated profit of the receipts and payments from
an investment project at given rates of interest.
(ii) Calculate the internal rate of return implied by the receipts and payments from an
investment project.
(iii) Calculate the money-weighted rate of return, the time-weighted rate of return and the
linked internal rate of return on an investment or a fund.
Learning objectives
6
(i) Describe the investment and risk characteristics of the following types of asset available
for investment purposes:
Topic 7
Elementary compound interest problems assuming
a tax-free investor
Indicative study and assessment weighting 25% 7
Learning objectives
(i) Calculate the present value of payments from a fixed interest security where the coupon
rate is constant and the security is redeemed in one Instalment.
(ii) Calculate the running yield and the redemption yield from a fixed interest security
[as in 7 (i)], given the price.
(iii) Calculate the present value or yield from an ordinary share and a property, given simple
(but not necessarily constant) assumptions about the growth of dividends and rents.
(iv) Calculate the present value of an index-linked bond, given assumptions about the rate
of inflation.
Learning objectives
(i) Describe the main factors influencing the term structure of interest rates.
(ii) Explain what is meant by the par yield and the yield to maturity.
(iii) Explain what is meant by discrete spot rates and forward rates.
(iv) Define the relationships between discrete spot rates and forward rates.
END OF SYLLABUS
Answer: A
[Topic 2]
What is the annual rate of compound interest that has been paid over the 10
years?
A. 3.3%
B. 3.4%
C. 4.0%
D. 14.0%
Answer: B
[Topic 7]
Answer: D
[Topic 4]
Calculate the effective rate of interest per annum that will be paid by the
customer on the loan
A. 4.8%
B. 4.9%
C. 5.0%
D. 5.1%
Answer: A
[Topic 4]
7. A credit company offers a loan of £50,000. The loan is to be repaid by level monthly
instalments in arrears of £407.63 over a 25 year term. Interest is to be charged at an
effective rate of 9% p.a.
Calculate the interest paid in the final year to the nearest £1.
A. £222
B. £408
C. £4,671
D. £4,892
Answer: A
[Topic 4]
Calculate the capital component of the second payment to the nearest £1.
A. £206
B. £223
C. £274
D. £277
Answer: C
[Topic 4]
At the start of the 8th year, immediately after the 7th payment has been made,
the borrower asked for the term of the loan to be extended by 2 years. The
bank agreed to do this on condition that the rate of interest is increased to an
effective rate of 12% per annum for the remainder of the term and that all
future payments are paid quarterly in arrear.
Calculate, to the nearest $1, the net present value of the project at an interest
rate of 5%
p.a. assuming that the drinks are sold continuously throughout each year.
A. -$637
B. -$118
C. +$109
D. +$1,149
Answer: C
[Topic 5]
Under the terms of the arrangement the developer will buy the building for
£5,000,000. In order to make the building suitable as a business premises he will
need to spend £7,000,000 continuously during the first year. At the end of the first
year, he will let the property to the business for a further ten years at a fixed
annual rent, payable annually in advance. The business will then buy back the
property from him at twice the original sale price i.e. £10,000,000.
Calculate to the nearest £5,000 the annual rent the developer needs to charge in
order to obtain an internal rate of return of 7% p.a. from this project.
A . £920,000
B . £950,000
C. £965,000
D. £1,000,000
Answer: D
[Topic 5]
12. An investor places £25,000 into a fund on 1 January and holds the fund for 2 years.
He invests a further £5,000 on 1 July of the 1st year. At the end of the 2-year period on
31 December of the 2nd year, the fund is valued at £32,700.
Calculate, to one decimal place, the annual money weighted rate of return that
the investor achieved on the fund over the period.
A. 4.4%
B. 4.6%
C. 4.8%
D. 5.0%
Answer: B
[Topic 5]
The fund manager invested $5,000,000 into the fund on 31 March and withdrew
$8,000,000 from the fund on 30 September. At the end of the year he calculated
the time weighted return (TWRR) on the fund to be 14.8%.
What can you deduce about the money weighted rate of return (MWRR) on the
fund?
Answer: D
[Topic 5]
A. The holder has the option to buy a specified asset at an agreed price
B. The holder has the option to sell a specified asset at an agreed price
C. The holder has the obligation to buy a specified asset at an agreed price
D. The holder has the obligation to sell a specified asset at an agreed price
Answer: A
[Topic 1]
The price of the bond per £100 nominal which would give an investor a redemption yield
of 7% p.a. effective is:
A. £91.80
B. £92.33
C. £92.69
D. £155.42
Answer: B
[Topic 7]
16. A fixed interest bond was issued at £110 per £100 nominal 6 years ago and will be
redeemed in 2 years’ time at £105 per £100 nominal.
An investor has just purchased the bond for £97 per £100 nominal. Coupons of £4.50
are paid annually in arrear with the next coupon due in exactly 1 years’ time. The bond
will be redeemed at par in exactly 2 years’ time.
A. 3.6%
B. 4.1%
C. 4.6%
D. 6.1%
Answer: C
[Topic 7]
The price per share the investor should pay to achieve a return of 7% p.a. on the
portfolio, based on the assumption that the shares are held in perpetuity is:
A . $1.25
B. $2.00
C . $4.67
D. $5.20
Answer: C
[Topic 2]
The dividend that has just been paid was £0.50. Based on previous company
accounts the Investor expects annual dividends to continue and to increase in line
with inflation at 3% p.a.
Assuming that the share is held in perpetuity, calculate the annual yield, to the
nearest 1%, implied by the share price.
A. 2%
B. 3%
C. 4%
D. 5%
Answer: D
[Topic 7]
Assuming an interest rate of 7% p.a. effective, what is the purchase price of the
bond per £100 nominal?
A. £85.95
B. £90.61
C. £103.88
D. £104.85
Answer: D
[Topic 7]
Calculate the 2-year forward rate from time t=2, expressed as an annual rate of interest
to one decimal place.
A. 3.2%
B. 3.7%
C. 4.5%
D. 5.0%
Answer: D
[Topic 8]
Disclaimer: This Module 1 Resource Guide has been prepared by and/or on behalf of CAA Global. CAA Global does not
accept any responsibility and/or liability whatsoever for the content or use of this resource guide. This resource guide does
not constitute advice and should not be relied upon as such. CAA Global does not guarantee any outcome or result from
the application of this resource guide and no warranty as to the accuracy or correctness of this resource guide is provided.
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