Actuarial Society of South Africa - Marking Schedule - May 2020 - F205 Investment - Fellowship Applications

Sep 27, 2026

Uploaded by iuabcfuw

Marking schedule for the Actuarial Society of South Africa Fellowship Applications, May 2020, for subject F205 (Investment). The report explains that candidates completed an online exam during the COVID-19 lockdown and that the marking process remained largely normal. It highlights differences from previous papers, notes timing challenges caused by four questions, and summarizes performance patterns around the pass mark. Question-specific guidance covers credit, liquidity, operational, interest rate, and market risks, plus detailed application and higher-order reasoning expectations for banking and profitability links.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time40 min

AccessFree to download

QUESTION 1

Part (i) - Knowledge question on banking

Part (ii) - Application and due diligence expectations

Part (iii) - Linking interest rates to NII and currency impacts

Part (iv) - Topical industry issues and scoring observations

Risk list (i)

Model solution points (ii)

Actuarial Society of South Africa MARKING SCHEDULE May 2020 Subject F205-Investment Fellowship Applications This paper was written under unusual circumstances as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown. Candidates completed the exam online via a platform provided by ASSA. The exam setting and marking process was, however, largely able to be undertaken as normal. The exam session presented no significant incidents as a result of the online process, and candidates’submissions, although not written in the usual word format, were found by the examiners tobe straightforward to mark. This paper varied from previous papers in that the exam comprised four rather than three questions. Time management was therefore critical as there were more questions scenarios to work through when formulating solutions. This also meant more, shorter sub-questions with smaller mark allocations. There was, however a very high number of marks available making it easier to score marks in the exam. The exam also examined new material on banking which was introduced to the syllabus in 2019. The paper was diverse as it covered a broad range of the syllabus. A couple of very well answered scripts were received, with the balance of the passes clustered very tightly around the pass mark. The majority of candidates who did not pass scored an FB, with a couple ofFC’s and FD’s which is not unusual. Please note that this examiner report presents one possible model solution to the questions. Alternative solutions provided are considered and marks awarded where correct points are well motivated. QUESTION 1 Part (i) was a short knowledge question taken directly from the new banking material. This was very well answered by candidates. The balance of the question comprised application and higher order thinking (part (ii)) questions. In part (ii) many candidates placed excessive focus on the bank's ability to administer the interest rate swap, instead of the due diligence of the bank. In part (iii) many candidates failed to connect the likely lower short-term interest rates to the pressure it would place on banks' NII; or the specific impact of currency movements on the unhedged exposure. The link between interest rates and bank profitability was missed by most candidates. Parts (iii) and (iv) covered highly topical industry issues which presented a good opportunity to score marks to well-read candidates. It was disappointing that candidates were not able to generate better answers for these questions. The average candidate scored well below pass mark for parts (ii) and (iii), whereas for part (iv) the average mark was in line with a pass mark. (i) 1. Credit risk 2. Liquidity risk 3. Operational risk 4. Interest rate risk 5. Market risk +1 other (reinvestment, model, prepayment, country, business, reputational, regulatory, competition) (ii) 1. They need to assess the ability of the bank to continue to meet their side of the obligation in term of the swap arrangement. This will involve looking at the overall financial position of the bank and its ability to deal with adverse conditions. 2. Customer credit risk is one of the primary risks associated with banking. One would therefore assess: 3. Concentration of credit risk across individuals and sectors 4. Split of secured vs unsecured credit 5. Quality of collateral where it exists 6. Credit provisioning levels and how these have changed over time and how they compare to peers. Recent accounting changes have impacted how banks account for bad debts 7. What are the latest trends in credit delinquencies experienced? 8. General economic conditions and how banks have fared relative to each other in weak economic conditions 9. Other sources of credit risk can arise from the bank’s trading book – particularly counterparty credit risk. Again, similar assessment in terms of the above should be considered. Financial position and strength of the bank. 10. Details of previous year

FAQs

Why was the May 2020 F205 Investment exam considered unusual, and how did candidates take it?

It was written under unusual circumstances due to the COVID-19 lockdown. Candidates completed the exam online via a platform provided by ASSA.

What changed in the exam structure compared with previous papers, and why did it matter?

The exam comprised four questions instead of three, making time management critical. It also led to more, shorter sub-questions with smaller mark allocations.

What common issue did many candidates make in answering Question 1 (ii) and (iii)?

In (ii), many focused excessively on the bank’s ability to administer an interest rate swap rather than due diligence. In (iii), many failed to link lower short-term rates to pressure on banks’ NII and to currency-movement impacts on unhedged exposure.

Sep 27, 2026

Uploaded by iuabcfuw