BFF1001 Foundations of Finance
The Complete Study & Assessment Guide · S2 2026BFF1001 Overview
- Monash Business School
- Semester 2, 2026
- an undergraduate foundation finance unit
- 6 credit points
- a finance foundation unit
BFF1001 introduces the financial system, financial mathematics, valuation, capital budgeting, household finance, institutions, regulation, equity, debt and foreign exchange. It is taught within Monash Business School. It is an undergraduate foundation finance unit. It carries 6 credit points.
- Draw cash flows first Timing and sign errors are usually more damaging than calculator errors.
- A rate needs a period Never compare annual, monthly, nominal and effective rates without conversion.
- Price is discounted claims Equity, debt and projects differ in the claims and risk embedded in their cash flows.
What you get in the full BFF1001 Study & Assessment Guide
- 10 chapters, 28 pages — every assessed topic, week by week
- 13 original practice questions, each with a model answer
- 10 worked examples, solved the way BFF1001 marks
- 19 computed figures, redrawn from the course’s own numbers
- Before-you-submit checklist for the Exercise stream (60%) — what markers reward, what costs marks
Free on this page: assessment table, chapter map, one worked example, key terms, FAQ. The rest is in the full study & assessment guide.
How BFF1001 is assessed
| Component | Weight | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Exercise stream | 60% | Current Moodle controls individual exercise names, dates and internal allocation |
| Within-semester test | 40% | Current Moodle controls date, conditions and coverage |
Current public and Moodle assessment surfaces agree on an Exercise stream worth 60% and a within-semester Test worth 40%, with no final exam. One internal allocation table conflicts with another exercise detail, so this Bible deliberately does not publish a finer 20/40 or 30/30 split as settled fact.
What other students are asking about BFF1001
- Where can I find lecture notes or study guides for BFF1001 at Monash?
- The BFF1001 study guide in AskSia Library covers Foundations of Finance in 10 chapters, with the assessment table, a chapter-by-chapter topic map, key terms and a worked example, free to read on this page.
- Is there a final exam in BFF1001?
- No final exam is listed in the offering this AskSia Library guide is built from; BFF1001 is assessed by Exercise stream 60%, Within-semester test 40%.
- What does BFF1001 cover on present value, future value and rate conversion?
- In AskSia Library's BFF1001 guide, the Present Value, Future Value and Rate Conversion chapter explains present value · future value · effective annual rate · move a cash flow across time and compare rate conventions.
- What does BFF1001 cover on annuities, perpetuities and loan payments?
- In AskSia Library's BFF1001 guide, the Annuities, Perpetuities and Loan Payments chapter explains annuity · perpetuity · amortisation · value repeated payments and reconcile a loan balance.
- What does BFF1001 cover on capital budgeting and net present value?
- In AskSia Library's BFF1001 guide, the Capital Budgeting and Net Present Value chapter explains net present value · incremental cash flow · opportunity cost · build and evaluate project cash flows using NPV.
Current BFF1001 dates
| Date | Item | Control |
|---|---|---|
| Current S2 teaching period | Exercise stream | 60% in aggregate; consult live Moodle for the reconciled internal split and deadlines. |
| Current S2 teaching period | Within-semester test | 40%; live Moodle controls exact operation. |
Dates are as published in the current course materials. Confirm exact deadlines and submission settings in the live LMS.
What BFF1001 covers
The learning path moves from Finance, the Financial System and Interest Rates, through the problems opened by Financial Regulation and Risk Management, to the synthesis required in Foreign Exchange and Cross-Currency Decisions.
Finance, the Financial System and Interest Rates
financial system · surplus unit · interest rate · trace funds from savers through markets or intermediaries to usersDefine financial system
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: Current Topic 1 introduces finance, system participants and the role of rates.
- financial system
- surplus unit
- interest rate
- Applying financial system
- Limits of surplus unit and interest rate
Present Value, Future Value and Rate Conversion
present value · future value · effective annual rate · move a cash flow across time and compare rate conventionsDefine present value
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: Current Topic 2 directly introduces valuation and financial mathematics.
- present value
- future value
- effective annual rate
- Applying present value
- Limits of future value and effective annual rate
Annuities, Perpetuities and Loan Payments
annuity · perpetuity · amortisation · value repeated payments and reconcile a loan balanceDefine annuity
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: The current schedule places valuation and financial mathematics before applied household and security decisions.
- annuity
- perpetuity
- amortisation
- Applying annuity
- Limits of perpetuity and amortisation
Capital Budgeting and Net Present Value
net present value · incremental cash flow · opportunity cost · build and evaluate project cash flows using NPVDefine net present value
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: Capital budgeting appears in the current unit topology after valuation foundations.
- net present value
- incremental cash flow
- opportunity cost
- Applying net present value
- Limits of incremental cash flow and opportunity cost
Mortgages, Superannuation and Household Finance
mortgage · superannuation · liquidity constraint · compare repayment, liquidity and retirement trade-offsDefine mortgage
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: The current official scope includes personal financial decisions and institutions.
- mortgage
- superannuation
- liquidity constraint
- Applying mortgage
- Limits of superannuation and liquidity constraint
Financial Regulation and Risk Management
prudential regulation · market conduct · risk appetite · connect a financial risk to governance, capital, conduct and monitoring controlsDefine prudential regulation
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: Regulation and risk management are explicit parts of the current topic sequence.
- prudential regulation
- market conduct
- risk appetite
- Applying prudential regulation
- Limits of market conduct and risk appetite
Financial Institutions and Intermediation
financial intermediary · maturity transformation · liquidity risk · explain how institutions earn spreads while transforming risk and liquidityDefine financial intermediary
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: The current course connects financial-system foundations to financial institutions.
- financial intermediary
- maturity transformation
- liquidity risk
- Applying financial intermediary
- Limits of maturity transformation and liquidity risk
Equity Securities and Share Valuation
ordinary share · dividend yield · required return · connect dividends, growth and required return to a share valueDefine ordinary share
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: Equity securities are an explicit later topic in the current unit topology.
- ordinary share
- dividend yield
- required return
- Applying ordinary share
- Limits of dividend yield and required return
Debt Securities, Yields and Interest-Rate Risk
bond · yield to maturity · interest-rate risk · price a bond and explain inverse price-yield movementDefine bond
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: Debt securities follow equity in the current topic sequence.
- bond
- yield to maturity
- interest-rate risk
- Applying bond
- Limits of yield to maturity and interest-rate risk
Foreign Exchange and Cross-Currency Decisions
exchange rate · appreciation · cross rate · convert cash flows and diagnose currency exposure without reversing the quoteDefine exchange rate
The course material gives this chapter a concrete anchor: Foreign exchange completes the current unit's listed market topics.
- exchange rate
- appreciation
- cross rate
- Applying exchange rate
- Limits of appreciation and cross rate
It is positioned as a finance foundation unit.
The unit connects time-value calculations to household, corporate, institutional and market decisions without a final examination.
Assessment in bff1001 is distributed as follows: an Exercise stream worth 60% and a within-semester Test worth 40%; current sources conflict on the exercise stream's finer internal split
The operational assessment conditions matter here.
No final examination is published in the current S2 structure; the 40% test is held within semester.
What makes bff1001 demanding is concrete: turning a verbal finance decision into correctly timed cash flows and then keeping rate period, compounding, sign, risk and decision interpretation aligned
No numeric component hurdle is published in the retrieved current Handbook or Moodle surfaces; the overall unit pass standard applies.
For enrolment planning, Confirm current course-map eligibility and prohibition rules in the Monash Handbook.
The learning path moves from Finance, the Financial System and Interest Rates, through the problems opened by Financial Regulation and Risk Management, to the synthesis required in Foreign Exchange and Cross-Currency Decisions.
Worked example · free
Choose between two savings rates
- 1Convert Account A to an effective annual rate.
- 1Compute (1+0.058/12)^12-1.
- 1Compare with 5.9%.
- 1State that fees, tax and access may change the decision.
Key terms
- financial system
- Institutions, markets, instruments and infrastructure that move funds and allocate financial risk. This chapter uses the concept when students trace funds from savers through markets or intermediaries to users.
- surplus unit
- Household, firm or government whose saving exceeds current funding needs. It helps explain the reasoning required to trace funds from savers through markets or intermediaries to users.
- interest rate
- Price of transferring purchasing power across time, expressed for a stated period and convention. Its limit matters because a quoted rate is uninterpretable without maturity, compounding, credit and inflation context.
- present value
- Current equivalent of future cash flow discounted at a rate reflecting time and risk. This chapter uses the concept when students move a cash flow across time and compare rate conventions.
- future value
- Amount to which current value accumulates under a stated rate and number of periods. It helps explain the reasoning required to move a cash flow across time and compare rate conventions.
- effective annual rate
- Annual growth rate including within-year compounding. Its limit matters because discount rate, cash-flow period and compounding frequency must refer to compatible units.
- annuity
- Finite sequence of equal payments at regular intervals under a stated timing convention. This chapter uses the concept when students value repeated payments and reconcile a loan balance.
- perpetuity
- Level cash-flow stream continuing indefinitely in the simplified model. It helps explain the reasoning required to value repeated payments and reconcile a loan balance.
- amortisation
- Repayment process splitting scheduled payments between interest and principal. Its limit matters because ordinary, due, growing and irregular streams require different timing treatment.
- net present value
- Present value of incremental project benefits less present value of incremental costs. This chapter uses the concept when students build and evaluate project cash flows using NPV.
- incremental cash flow
- Cash flow that occurs because the project is accepted rather than rejected. It helps explain the reasoning required to build and evaluate project cash flows using NPV.
BFF1001 FAQ
Where do students usually lose marks in bff1001?
turning a verbal finance decision into correctly timed cash flows and then keeping rate period, compounding, sign, risk and decision interpretation aligned
How is bff1001 assessed?
an Exercise stream worth 60% and a within-semester Test worth 40%; current sources conflict on the exercise stream's finer internal split
What is the bff1001 final assessed-task format?
No final examination is published in the current S2 structure; the 40% test is held within semester.
Does bff1001 have a hurdle or component-level pass rule?
No numeric component hurdle is published in the retrieved current Handbook or Moodle surfaces; the overall unit pass standard applies.
Which offering does this bff1001 guide cover?
It is aligned to Semester 2, 2026; confirm your enrolled class and timetable in the current institutional system.
What prerequisites or restrictions apply to bff1001?
Confirm current course-map eligibility and prohibition rules in the Monash Handbook.
Questions students ask in each BFF1001 chapter
- What is the main task in Finance, the Financial System and Interest Rates?
- Trace funds from savers through markets or intermediaries to users. Chapter 01 · Finance, the Financial System and Interest Rates
- What is the main task in Present Value, Future Value and Rate Conversion?
- Move a cash flow across time and compare rate conventions. Chapter 02 · Present Value, Future Value and Rate Conversion
- What is the main task in Annuities, Perpetuities and Loan Payments?
- Value repeated payments and reconcile a loan balance. Chapter 03 · Annuities, Perpetuities and Loan Payments
- What is the main task in Capital Budgeting and Net Present Value?
- Build and evaluate project cash flows using npv. Chapter 04 · Capital Budgeting and Net Present Value
- What is the main task in Mortgages, Superannuation and Household Finance?
- Compare repayment, liquidity and retirement trade-offs. Chapter 05 · Mortgages, Superannuation and Household Finance
- What is the main task in Financial Regulation and Risk Management?
- Connect a financial risk to governance, capital, conduct and monitoring controls. Chapter 06 · Financial Regulation and Risk Management
- What is the main task in Financial Institutions and Intermediation?
- Explain how institutions earn spreads while transforming risk and liquidity. Chapter 07 · Financial Institutions and Intermediation
- What is the main task in Equity Securities and Share Valuation?
- Connect dividends, growth and required return to a share value. Chapter 08 · Equity Securities and Share Valuation
- What is the main task in Debt Securities, Yields and Interest-Rate Risk?
- Price a bond and explain inverse price-yield movement. Chapter 09 · Debt Securities, Yields and Interest-Rate Risk
- What is the main task in Foreign Exchange and Cross-Currency Decisions?
- Convert cash flows and diagnose currency exposure without reversing the quote. Chapter 10 · Foreign Exchange and Cross-Currency Decisions
How to prepare for the assessments
Retrieve the course map, practise the recurring method—identify the financial decision and timing, draw the cash flows, select a valuation or risk relation with compatible units, compute transparently, then stress assumptions and interpret the result for the decision maker—on changed scenarios, and verify every operational assessment detail in the live institutional system.
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