25+ Corporate Finance Institute Free Courses 2024

Are you a finance enthusiast and want to learn more? But are unsure about long-term financial commitment? This article contains a list of Corporate Finance Institute Free Courses you can enroll into and therefore you can learn from CFI without monetary commitments.

Corporate Financial Institute Overview

CFI was established in 2016 and since then Corporate Financial Institute has become a world-renowned provider of financial education. It provides online finance-only courses and training. In addition, CFI certificates are recognized globally and add huge value to your CV. Hence, CFI is a dream school for finance enthusiasts.

CFI upholds five values that define it- Practical, simple, professional, democratic, and philanthropy. Its goal is to assist anyone in becoming a world-class financial analyst.

Moreover, CFI has five-star ratings from all its students on various platforms like TrustPilot, Glassdoor, etc. Since CFI is known for skill-based education, it has over 1 million students enrolled on its platform.

Corporate Finance Institute Free Courses

CFI provides a lot of prep courses free of cost for finance enthusiasts. All of these are beginner courses that give you a sneak peek into the field. Above all, they give you a better understanding of key concepts and various career paths you can opt for in the banking and finance industry.

So we have categorized Corporate finance institute free courses as follows: There are CFI Free Courses for

• FMVA Enthusiasts,
• CBCA Enthusiasts
• CMSA Enthusiasts, and
• BIDA Enthusiasts

CFI Free Courses for FMVA Enthusiasts

If you are a Financial Modeling and Valuation Analyst (FMVA) enthusiast, the following free courses will act as excellent guides on your path forward.

1. Corporate Finance Fundamentals

Corporate Finance Fundamentals is a course that will strengthen your basics in around 2.5 hours. It teaches the fundamentals of corporate finance like key players of the capital markets, capital raising process, business valuation techniques, financing of acquisitions, types of debt and also equity securities, and a lot more.

The course also gives you an overview of career paths and helps you prepare for interviews. If you want to get a stronghold on the basics of corporate finance, then this course is your best fit. 

Course Syllabus

• Introduction to different players in capital markets
• Capital Investment
• Capital Financing
• Dividends and Return of Capital
• Roles in Corporate Finance
• Qualified Assessment

Course features

• Learn the fundamentals – The courses focus on teaching you the fundamentals. It is an excellent place for beginners to get their foot into the finance world.

• Shows career options – The course also gives a complete picture of various career paths in the finance field. It prepares you for interviews as well.

• Self-paced course – The course is 100% online and self-paced, which means you can learn anytime and anywhere. 

Course Details:

• Duration: 2.5 hours
• Instructor: Tim Vipond (COB of CFI)
• Certificate: Yes
• Curriculum: Beginner
• Format: 100% online, video-on-demand

If you’re interested to learn more advanced skills and knowledge about FMVA then read this article CFI FMVA Coupon Codes.

2. Excel Fundamentals – Formulas for Finance

The field of finance requires a lot of analysis, and excel is the best tool out there to help you with financial analysis. Hence, this free excel fundamentals crash course builds a strong foundation in excel for finance-related careers.

The course initially teaches basic excel functions and progresses towards the advanced functions used by financial analysts. Also, Excel functions required for financial analysis and financial modeling are given importance. 

Course Syllabus

• Introduction to Excel
• Excel Layout
• Excel Settings
• Basic Financial Analysis Setup
• Advanced Financial Analysis Setup
• Functions & Formulas
• Summary of all the excel functions
• Qualified Assessment

Course Features

• Learn Excel for financial analysis – The course teaches you all the excel skills required by a financial analyst on the job. It is a practical course that is also filled with real-world skills.

• Sharpen your modeling skills – The course focuses on keyboard shortcuts, excel functions, and formulas that sharpen your financial modeling skills and significantly help you to save time.

• Learn industry-leading best practices – The course simulates on-job analyst training and also teaches you the best practices followed in an actual job.

Course Details

• Duration: 3.5 hours
• Instructor: Tim Vipond (COB of CFI)
• Certificate: Yes
• Curriculum: Beginner
• Format: 100% online, video-on-demand

3. Reading Financial Statements

Reading Financial Statements is a highly interactive course with case studies and applied exercises. It teaches you the usage of sophisticated search and navigation tools to understand the financial statements of any company.

The course also teaches you to decipher the meaning of complex financial statements using the balance sheet and cash flow statement of Espresso software company as a case study. The course consists of pop quizzes to test what you have learned.

Course Syllabus

• Introduction to financial statements
• Understanding the Balance Sheet
• Understanding the Income Statement and Cash Flow Statement
• Qualified Assessment

Course Features

• Highly practical course – The course consists of case studies and applied exercises that help in practical learning over theoretical learning. It gives a solid understanding of specific accounts in a balance sheet.

• Downloadable resources – The course has two reference guides- an accounting factsheet and a financial statement glossary which you can download as pdf and then use to refer to in the future.

• Interactive learning – With applied exercises and pop quizzes, the course tends to provide interactive learning. It also helps you test what you have learned.

Course Details

• Duration: 1.5 hours
• Instructor: Lisa (Managing Director at MDA Training)
• Certificate: Yes
• Curriculum: Beginner
• Format: 100% online, video-on-demand.

Want to make a better decision at choosing the right platform to learn? Here’s an article from OnlineCourseing about CFI VS Wall Street Prep.

CFI Free Courses for CBCA Enthusiasts

If you are a Commercial Banking and Credit Analyst (CBCA) enthusiast, the following free courses will guide your way forward. They teach you basic skills as well as the concepts required by a CBCA.

1. Introduction to Banking

It is an introductory course for anyone interested and wanting to know more about the banking industry. Introduction to Banking helps you understand the types of firms that offer financial services, the types of products and services they offer, and who their customers are. 

The course also sheds light on how banks make money and various career paths in the banking industry. 

Course Syllabus

• Categories and Types of Financial Institutions
• Banking Services: What They Are and Who Uses Them
• How Financial Institutions Generate Return
• Banking Careers
• Course Summary
• Qualified Assessment

Course Features

• Learn about the banking industry – The course gives amazing insights into the banking industry by breaking down the concepts such as types of firms offering financial services, services they offer, who their customers are, and how banks make money.

• Self-paced course – Since the course is self-paced, you can take the course at any time and from anywhere as per your suitability.

• Careers in banking – The course sheds light on all the career options available in the banking industry and also the skills required in different banking careers.

Course Details:

• Duration: 2 hours
• Instructor: Lisa (MD at MDA Training)
• Certificate: Yes
• Curriculum: Beginner
• Format: 100% online, video-on-demand

2. Careers in Commercial Banking

Careers in Commercial Banking is a short course that gives you an idea of different careers you can pursue in a commercial bank. The course also helps you identify the role which is your best fit based on your experience, technical skills, and personality.

If you are a graduate looking for a job in the banking sector or a professional looking for a job change, then this course will be the best guide for you. Because it will give you insights into what a workday will look like for a specific role in the commercial bank.

Course Syllabus

• Introduction to Commercial Banking
• The Relationship Team
• The Middle and Back Office
• Other Career paths
• Conclusion
• Qualified Assessments

Course Features

• Understand roles in commercial banks – The course gives you a complete understanding of the roles and responsibilities of various positions and roles in a commercial bank. It also explains how different roles work together to generate revenue growth.

• Find your best fit – Based on your experience, personality, and skills, the course will help you find your best-fit position in a commercial bank. It also gives you insights into what your workday may look like.

• Career research – The course helps you do adequate career research and hence it empowers you with all the required information and resources to prepare for the commercial banking recruitment process.

Course Details:

• Duration: 1 hour
• Instructor: Kyle Peterdy
• Certificate: Yes
• Curriculum: Beginner
• Format: 100% online, self-paced

CFI Free Courses for CMSA Enthusiasts

If you are a Capital Market and Securities Analyst (CMSA) enthusiast, the following courses will help you dive deep and understand the fundamentals of the field.

1. Introduction to Capital Markets

Introduction to Capital Markets is a comprehensive course that gives a complete overview of capital markets and career opportunities in capital markets. It also helps you identify the skills required to work in the capital markets.

The course will help you understand the structure of the capital market as well as how each constituent contributes to the smooth functioning of the market. It also gives you an idea of the field best suited for you.

Course Syllabus

• Course Introduction
• Sell-Side
• Defining Capital Markets
• Sell-Side Investment Banking: Origination & Primary Markets
• Sell-Side S&T, Research: Secondary Markets
• Buy-Side
• Buy-Side Traditional and Buy-Side Non-Traditional
• Course Summary
• Qualified Assessment

Course Features

• Understand buy-side and sell-side – The course gives you insights into both the buy and sell-side of the capital market. It helps you understand activities involved on both sides and explore your career paths.

• Choose your best fit – The course gives you an understanding of what a workday looks like for different roles in the capital market, therefore it helps you find your best fit based on your passion, skills, and experience.

Course Details:

• Duration: 2 hours
• Instructor: Meeyeon Park
• Certificate: Yes
• Curriculum: Beginner 
• Format: 100% online, video-on-demand

2. Economics for Capital Markets

Economics for the capital market is a well-structured course that helps you understand the impact economic policies, as well as principles, have on capital markets. It will also help you differentiate between economic indicators and economic releases.

Moreover, the course covers central banks and monetary policies of various countries like England, Japan, etc., to provide an in-depth understanding. It also makes you familiar with economic indicators like Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Purchasing power, Consumer price index (CPI), etc.

Course Syllabus

• Economics for Capital Markets Overview
• Economic Events
• Central Banks
• Economic Indicators
• Trading Around Economic Releases
• Qualified Assessment

Course Features

• Understand the impact of economic policies – The course discusses central banks and monetary policies of various countries to help you understand the impact of economic policies on the capital market.

• Use of economic information – The course helps you understand economic releases, indicators, events, etc., that impact the markets. It also helps in deciphering the economic information used by market practitioners to trade and invest.

• Build strong foundation – Economic principles are the basis of a country’s monetary system. The course also helps in building a strong foundation of economic principles that impact the markets.

Course Details:

• Duration: 3 hours
• Instructor: Andrew Loo
• Certificate: Yes
• Curriculum: Beginner
• Format: 100% online, self-paced

CFI Free Courses for BIDA Enthusiasts

If you are a Business Intelligence and Data Analyst (BIDA) enthusiast, the following free courses will help you understand the field better.

1. Introduction to Business Intelligence 

Introduction to Business Intelligence is an introductory course that gives a complete overview of business intelligence. It helps you understand the difference between business intelligence and data science. The course equips you with tools commonly used in business intelligence.

The course also covers the career prospects in the business intelligence field. It defines the roles and positions involved with BI in addition to the skills required to gain the job role. 

Course Syllabus

• Introduction to business intelligence
• What Is Business Intelligence
• Communicating with Data
• Key Concepts of Data
• Course Summary
• Qualified Assessment

Course Features

• Revolutionize work with BI tools – The course helps you understand Business intelligence tools and how they can revolutionize your analysis work.

• Understand data types and structures – The course helps you understand different types of data types and data structures. It helps you recognize badly designed data structures and how to correct them.

• Career prospects – The course covers different career paths you can opt for with the knowledge of business intelligence. It also discusses the skills required for various positions and helps you decide your best fit.

Course Details:

• Duration: 1.5 hours
• Instructor: Sebastian Taylor
• Certificate: Yes
• Curriculum: Beginner 
• Format: 100% online, video-on-demand

2. Data Science & Machine Learning Fundamentals

Data Science & Machine Learning Fundamentals is a course that gives an overview of how data science helps in decision-making with data-driven insights in the business and finance industry. Moreover, the course will take you through the data science cycle that makes predictions by building machine learning models.

The course will help you understand the roles of feature selection, feature engineering, and also other methods that prepare the data for analysis. It will also explore algorithms used for machine learning models.

Course Syllabus

• Data Science Basics
• Regression
• Classification
• Data Preparation
• Other Types of Analysis
• Conclusion
• Qualified Assessment

Course Features

• Understand data science – The course helps you understand data science by outlining the data science cycle and the machine learning process.

• Use machine learning models – The course focuses on machine learning models as well as how they prepare data for analysis. It also helps you make predictions using machine learning models.

• Select the right algorithm – The course lists the algorithms that serve both supervised and unsupervised learning. It also helps you understand and select the right algorithm for the right data analysis.

Course Details:

• Duration: 4 hours
• Instructors: Sebastian Taylor, Lester Leong
• Certificate: Yes
• Curriculum: Beginner
• Format: 100% online, video-on-demand

More Free Courses

Course Name	Instructor	Duration
Accounting Fundamentals	Scott Powell	2.5 h
Analyzing Growth Drivers & Business Risks	Kyle Peterdy	2 h
Banking Products and Services	Lisa Dorian	4 h
Capital IQ Fundamentals	Tim Vipond	2 h
Enterprise Deployment & Governance: Power BI Edition	PBI Lab Inc.	3.5 h
Foreign Exchange Fundamentals	Guy O’Loughnane	2 h
Forms of Business Structure	Gabriel Lip	1.5 h
Fundamentals of Credit	Kyle Peterdy	2 h
Introduction to Cryptocurrency	Andrew Loo	2 h
Introduction to ESG	Noah Miller	1.5 h
Introduction to Wealth Management	Tim Vipond	3 h
Macabacus Fundamentals	Tim Vipond	1.5 h
Math Fundamentals for Capital Markets	Andrew Loo	1 h
Microsoft Word Tutorial – Business Documents	Tim Vipond	2.5 h
Pitch Deck Essentials for Lenders	Kyle Peterdy	2 h
Refinitiv Workspace Fundamentals	Tim Vipond	1 h
Statistics Fundamentals	Lester Leong	2.5 h
Vertical IQ Fundamentals	Kyle Peterdy	1.5 h

Pros and Cons of Corporate Finance Institute Free Courses:

Pros

• In-depth learning

All the CFI free courses explain key concepts in detail, which helps you understand the field better.

• Career prospects

Each CFI free course discusses various career options in the field. It helps you understand your best fit based on your interests, skills, and experience.

• Self-paced courses

All courses at CFI are 100% online and self-paced. Thus, you can learn anytime and anywhere in your comfort. 

• Globally recognized certificate

CFI is a world-renowned platform for finance-only education. CFI certificates are globally recognized which also adds huge value to your CV.

Cons

• Free courses are only for beginners

All the CFI free courses are for beginners with no knowledge and experience in the field. You will have to pay for advanced courses.

Conclusion: Are CFI Free Courses Worth It?

To sum up, All the Corporate Finance Institute free courses are definitely worth your time as they give deep insights into the field of your choice.

Enjoyed reading this article? Here’s another article from OnlineCourseing about CFI CBCA.

FAQs

Here are a few frequently asked questions about Corporate Finance Institute free courses.