International financial markets are increasingly determining the capability of national economies by providing means of investment.
Companies are at the mercy of continually mounting international competition.
At the same time, stock price, interest and exchange rate risks have clearly risen since the collapse of the Bretton Woods system in 1973. In the past few years, credit loss risks have increasingly caused banks distress. As a reaction to this, complex financial instruments and financial services were developed making specific risk management possible. The use of these instruments and services require the development of newer models in financial market research as well as newer econometric research methods . Furthermore, the demand for people who are qualified to use these instruments has immensely increased, especially from banks, and cannot presently be covered by the German education system.