This public-sourced case was co-developed with CFA Institute for its university partners, candidates, and members as an exercise in ethical decision making. The case works well for CFA partner universities and others seeking an ethics case set in the financial-services industry. The case is set in May 2012 as investment bankers and Facebook executives prepare for FB's highly anticipated IPO. After meeting with more than 500 prospective investors at a luncheon event, Facebook's CFO confides that he has lost confidence that the company will meet its financial forecasts for the quarter. The senior investment banker leading the IPO must decide how best to counsel his client, and how to comply with his firm's code of ethics and the law. Time is short and expectations are high as they prepare for meeting other prospective investors and finalize the details of the IPO. Students are the decision makers and have the opportunity to identify and evaluate the various stakeholders and their respective objectives, as well as ethical principles, conflicts of interest, and situational influences that may be involved. Students enrolled in the CFA Program? can apply the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct to the situation to recommend a course of action. The case is also useful for teaching students about the IPO process in the United States, including information asymmetry and how large firms may serve clients with opposing interests.
