The case introduces a due diligence approach that prompts students to identify red flags and suspicious transactions through a fictitious case based on real-life examples. Students take on the role of an investment team manager of a hedge fund in Hong Kong focusing on investing in both private and publicly traded companies with significant growth potential. When the COVID-19 pandemic heavily affected industries across most sectors, most industries went through a major reshuffling leaving surviving industry performers that would have a great potential to become leaders over time. As such, the Company had been actively seeking new potential investments and meeting with their management since the end of 2022, and identified a potential company (Genuine) in the emission testing equipment industry. Through this case, students gain foundational knowledge of due diligence and learn to identify red flags for suspicious transactions or situations. They apply their learning by creating a due diligence plan and evaluating the available information on Genuine and its market. This analysis allows students to further advance their understanding and ultimately come to an investment decision. As an intermediate- to advanced-level case, students are required to actively compare data from different sources and perform relevant calculations. This will enable them to process and derive further information essential for making informed investment decisions.

The case introduces IPOs in Hong Kong from the perspectives of both issuers and investors. Hong Kong was a popular choice among many local and nonlocal companies for listing. It ranked as first globally in terms of total proceeds raised for 5 out of 10 years between 2011 and 2020. The case is set in the fourth quarter of 2020, when the Ant Group entered Hong Kong for its IPO. Students take on the role of Lin Wong, head of the investment team of a new investment fund under Next Capital Investment Limited. Students have the opportunity to learn about IPOs from various perspectives: as pre-IPO investors in a fund's investment that is ready to go public, as retail investors to subscribe for high-profile IPOs in the market, and as potential cornerstone investors to subscribe for a portion in the global offering of an IPO.

The case, set in January 2019, deals with how KTZ Express (KTZE), wholly owned subsidiary of National Company Kazakhstan Temir Zholy Joint-Stock Company (NC KTZ JSC or "KTZ") which is the national railway company of Kazakhstan, handles its dry port operation. KTZE provides logistics services and multimodal transport using its network of warehouses, terminals and airport infrastructure and operates the largest dry port in Khorgos, Kazakhstan. The dry port was designed to serve as a logistics hub between China and Europe that allowed sorting cargo coming from different origins to its destinations by trains. Following the introduction of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) since 2013, there has been significant increase in KTZE's business in Khorgos. Despite a general increase in business since the announcement of BRI in 2013, the dry port is only operating at 25% of its designed capacity of 540,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units of standard size containers) in 2018, and the momentum of traffic growth has been slowing down from the previous years. Students take on the role of Ms. Gaukhar Akasheva, Managing managing Director director of KTZE, to explore how the dry port could possibly impact supply chain management in the region, the possibility to change the pattern of logistic flows between China and Europe for some industries, and too firmly establish Khorgos as the major logistics hub in the region. Students are required to devise an action plan on how to attract new traffic and business, and to develop an operating model for optimizing the utilization of the facility in the next four to five years.

The case introduces various forms of real estate investment trusts ("REITs") existing in different markets in the world such as REITs in the United States, Japanese REITs (J-REITs) and Singapore REITs (S-REITs). The development Hong Kong's REITs (H-REITs) market started in 2005 when Link Real Estate Investment Trust listed its shares on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (SEHK), following the promulgation of the REIT Code in 2003. Development was slow. There were 11 REITs listed between 2003 and 2013, with one being suspended for trading; there was no listing of new REITs for six years, until December 2019 when China Merchants Commercial Real Estate Investment Trust listed its shares on the SEHK. REITs had developed rapidly in overseas markets such as Australia and the United States since the 1990s and had emerged in other markets like Japan and Singapore since the 2000s. And mainland China was developing its REIT market and could soon become one of the world's largest. Under the presence of strong competitions from neighbourhood markets and the potential opportunities from mainland property firms' fundraising needs and the development of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area, students take on the role of the SFC to consider how to better develop the Hong Kong's REITs market and make Hong Kong a capital formation centre for REITs.

A new accounting standard, IFRS 16 Leases, has come into effect on 1 January 2019. The new standard introduces a single lessee accounting model and requires a lessee to recognise assets and liabilities for all leases with a term of more than 12 months (except for low value underlying asset). The IFRS 16 introduces on lessee's account the "right-of-use" asset to represent its right to use the underlying leased asset and the "lease" liability to represent its obligation to make lease payments. The purpose of the case is to introduce IFRS 16 and illustrating its effect and the differences on treatments of leases compared with IAS 17. The case features a coffee company called Lazy Coffee. Readers take on the role of Jan Lo, the Financial Controller of the Company, who is closing the accounts of 2019 and retrospectively restating the figures of 2018 to reflect IFRS 16. Jan is also required to prepare detailed discussion on the application, implications and impact of changes in the accounting policy.

This case highlights the rise of China in the global economy and capital markets. Many wealthy individuals and institutional investors in China are seeking better asset management services. As foreign asset managers make strategic plans for China, China's opening of its financial markets provides foreign asset managers opportunities as well as challenges. Specifically, the case deals with how the world largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, LP (Bridgewater), founded by Ray Dalio, develops its China business under its wholly foreign-owned enterprise Bridgewater (China) Investment Management (BCIM). Students are expected to gain understanding of China's capital markets and wealth management industry from the perspective of Yan Wang, the general manager of BCIM, who is deciding how to embark on the next stage in China by reviewing its strategy and product offerings together with all major challenges ahead. Students can determine if the culture, products, and success factors of foreign asset managers work in China and discuss the potential strategies a foreign asset manager may undertake to develop its business in China. In addition, the case can be used for the discussion of the application of diversification, asset allocation, and all-weather strategy in practice and the merits and challenges of investing in the A-share market and RMB assets.

The case describes TG Capital Limited (TG is the fictitious name of a real company) as a global investment fund founded in 2014. Having successfully invested in a few technology start-ups across Southeast Asia, Mainland China, and Hong Kong by working with major companies in these regions, TG is known for its technological expertise and investments. In 2019, when the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), the city's de facto central bank and banking regulator, announced the issuance of another four virtual-banking licenses in addition to the first four. TG's management, which was committed to being the first to review all the latest technology-related opportunities and to moving into fintech, had to decide whether to step into the virtual-banking business by applying for a license.

The case explores how Hung Fook Tong Group Holdings Limited (1446.HK) a Hong Kong company engaged in the production and sales of a variety of herbal and non-herbal products under its "Hung Fook Tong (鴻福堂)" brand, accounts for its various membership programmes and promotional packages. Founded in 1986 by Mr. Wong Jing Fat, the Company has grown from a single herbal tea shop into a chain of 115 retail stores. The case is set in the first quarter of 2019 before the release of 2018 annual results. Students take on the role of Colin Lo, the Financial Controller of the Company. Mr. Lo is preparing for the upcoming board meeting. He expects a detailed discussion on the impact of changes in accounting policies, in particular, HKFRS 15 "Revenue from Contracts with Customers".