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I was really hyped for this course and kept thinking about taking it for about a year. I read a review about 6 months ago that recommends the Finance and capital markets course on Khan Academy and I did watch a good chunk of the videos there and made notes as well, before I decided to finally purchase the course on Coursera. Overall it's a really good course. Robert Shiller is just such a charismatic and passionate professor and I love listening to him, the assignments were very fair and the content very interesting. I really love how Shiller doesn't just teach you the financial theory, but also its societal implications. Finance is not just about money, but about getting things done. This is such a refreshing and unique perspective - and I love it! However it's also not a perfect course. I agree with another review that this course is very US-centric. This should come as no surprise, because this is a Yale course. Finance is very tightly regulated by all governments on Earth (each country will thus have different specifics) and I think that learning about the financial markets in the US makes the most sense, because the US is the most advanced in this field. However you do lose a bit of your motivation, when the assignment questions ask some specific things about financial history or companies from the US. My only other complaint would be that some terms are not defined or explained well in the course. While I was taking notes from the course, I often had to check the definitions on Investopedia (for example the definition of a Beta). These definitions become very important later on in the assignments. I think that Khan Academy does this better - because Khan assumes that you don't know anything and he explains things very intuitively. So just like another reviewer I can really recommend the Finance and capital markets course on Khan Academy (it's free ^^) in tandem with Financial Markets by Robert Shiller. In conclusion, if you're looking for a (beginner) finance course on Coursera, then this is the best course you can take, but as most things it isn't perfect.

The course does an excellent job of covering both foundational and more advanced topics in financial markets. On the surface level, it explains concepts like the role of the Federal Reserve and monetary policy which is very helpful for anyone trying to understand the mechanics behind financial systems. At the same time, it delves into more complex areas such as Quantitative Risk Models (QRM) and other sophisticated financial instruments offering a balance between accessibility and depth. One area where I found myself in disagreement with Professor Shiller was his perspective on philanthropy. While he seemed to present it in a largely positive light, I personally view philanthropy by ultra wealthy individuals with skepticism, as it can sometimes serve as a cover for questionable or self serving activities. This skepticism was heightened during the final guest lecture with Georgia Keohane who is currently the CEO of a Soros affiliated economic fund. This institution is connected to Scott Bessent, who famously worked with Soros to short the British pound in 1992 and in his own words engaged in “economic statecraft” in Iran,a euphemism for actions intended to undermine the Iranian economy. Among other things, Soros has also been involved in large scale speculative trading and efforts to influence currency and financial markets globally. Seeing someone currently leading a branch or affiliated entity of that organization appear as a guest speaker naturally raised questions for me about the broader motivations behind the the financial influence discussed in the course. Despite this, I would still highly recommend the course for anyone interested in financial markets. It provides a solid introduction for beginners while also touching on advanced topics that more experienced learners will appreciate. It’s a course that encourages critical thinking about finance, policy and the wider societal implications of wealth and investment.