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Nearly 119,000 Investment Professionals to Gather in 86 Countries for CFA Exams, a Global Industry Rite of Passage 


After June, CFA Institute will have given more than one million CFA exams. 

More than half of Financial Times/StarMine World Top Analysts are CFA charterholders.

 

Charlottesville, Va., June 4, 2008 – As about 119,000 current and aspiring investment professionals from 165 countries prepare to take the rigorous CFA exams this weekend, CFA Institute noted that this marks the administration of the one millionth exam since it was first offered in 1963.

In related news, CFA Institute, the global association of investment professionals, also reported that 99 out of 186 analysts recognized by the inaugural Financial Times/StarMine Global Analyst Awards hold the globally recognized CFA designation. (View the FT report.)

CFA Institute continues to see steady global growth in new CFA candidates − those registering for the CFA Program for the first time. From FY2007 to FY2008 (the CFA Institute fiscal year begins on September 1 and ends August 31), the top 10 markets of new CFA candidate growth for the December 2007 and June 2008 exams combined are: 

  1. United States (23,685 new candidates, 27 percent growth from FY2007)
  2. China (7,778 new candidates, 68 percent growth from FY2007)
  3. Canada (6,223 new candidates, 35 percent growth from FY2007)
  4. United Kingdom (5,299 new candidates, 42 percent growth from FY2007)
  5. Hong Kong (5,028 new candidates, 25 percent growth from FY2007)
  6. Singapore (4,019 new candidates, 66 percent growth from FY2007)
  7. South Korea (3,276 new candidates, 55 percent growth from FY2007)
  8. Australia (2,215 new candidates, 71 percent growth from FY2007)
  9. Taiwan (1,378 new candidates, 16 percent growth from FY2007)
  10. South Africa (1,199 new candidates, 26 percent growth from FY2007)


New CFA candidate growth continues to be especially strong in developing markets. For example, Vietnamese candidates increased 302 percent from FY2007; Kenyan candidates increased 95 percent; Egyptian candidates increased 23 percent; Russian candidates increased 55 percent; and Brazilian candidates increased 57 percent. Globally, new candidate registrations have grown by 29 percent from FY2007 to FY2008.

“The Financial Times/StarMine report gives further evidence that CFA charterholders’ knowledge, skills, and ability are gaining recognition,” said Jeff Diermeier, CFA, president and CEO of CFA Institute. “And as we approach the administration of the one millionth examination, I am pleased to report that interest in the CFA Program remains robust, with double-digit percentage increases in most countries. As the world grows in its need for financial expertise, this tangible feedback from the marketplace, of the relevance and quality of the CFA Program, is gratifying.”

The CFA examination is considered by many to be the investment profession’s most rigorous credentialing program. Level I is administered twice per year, in June and December, and Levels II and III are administered just once per year, in June.  

CFA Institute recommends that to be successful, a candidate should study a minimum of 750 hours for the three examination levels. On average, successful candidates sit for four examinations to complete the self-study program and earn the CFA charter. In addition to passing the exams, candidates must also have at least four years of work experience in the investment profession and must commit to abide by the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct, a commitment they must reaffirm each year to earn the charter.

Since 1990, compound annual growth rate for global registrations in the CFA Program is about 17 percent while the compound annual growth rate for CFA Institute membership is about 11 percent. 

“In addition to employers recognizing the value of the CFA charter by encouraging their employees to enroll in the program, more and more prestigious colleges and universities are embedding the CFA curriculum into their degree programs,” said Robert Johnson, CFA, deputy CEO. “In fact, fifty-six universities worldwide from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology to the London Business School to Cornell University have become CFA Program Partner institutions, which allows them to offer their students degree programs that focus on the concepts and principles in the CFA Program and identified by investment industry leaders as essential to global practice.”
(The CFA Institute fiscal year begins September 1 and ends August 31.)

Global CFA Exam Registration Statistics
  FY 2006 FY 2007 FY 2008
December Exam Registrations 31,699 42,077 56,261
June Exam Registrations 84,491 97,977 ~119,000
Total Registrations 116,190 140,054 175,261

(The CFA Institute fiscal year begins September 1 and ends August 31.)


Regional distribution of CFA Institute members (as of May 27, 2008) and CFA candidates*
    CFA Institute Members % Change in Members from FY 2007 FY 2008 Registered CFA Candidates % Change in Total Registered CFA Candidates from FY 2007
Global   95,573 5% 175,200 25%
United States   53,228 3% 55,600 23%
Canada   12,185 6% 14,400 27%
Europe   13,424 6% 28,000 35%
  France 496 4% 1,700 32%
  Germany 1,294 5% 2,500 25%
  Italy 289 0% 315 1%
  Switzerland 1,842 5% 2,200 23%
  United Kingdom 6,397 6% 11,500 37%
Asia/Pacific Asia   13,421 10% 64,000 21%
  Australia 1,181 14% 4,000 55%
  South Korea 691 -6% 7,325 41%
  Japan 1,133 1% 1,900 21%
  Mainland China 1,467 25% 15,900 56%
  Hong Kong 4,354 11% 12,000 25%
  Singapore 2,456 6% 7,700 52%
Latin America   1,066 7% 2,900 25%
  Brazil 267 11% 1,000 44%
Africa/Middle East   2,230 12% 9,900 39%
  South Africa 1,048 7% 2,500 21%

*Numbers may not add exactly to global value due to rounding.

Top 10 Test Center Cities with Largest Number of June 2008 Candidates

  1. New York – 8,710 total registered candidates
  2. Hong Kong – 7,912
  3. London – 7,330
  4. Singapore – 5,785
  5. Toronto – 5,239
  6. Shanghai – 4,964
  7. Seoul – 4,710
  8. Beijing – 4,284
  9. Chicago – 2,749
  10. Boston – 2,694


Additional Resources: 


CFA Institute
CFA Institute is the global association for investment professionals. It administers the CFA® and CIPM curriculum and exam programs worldwide; publishes research; conducts professional development programs; and sets voluntary, ethics-based professional and performance-reporting standards for the investment industry. CFA Institute has more than 95,500 members, who include the world’s 82,400 CFA charterholders, in 133 countries and territories, as well as 135 affiliated professional societies in 56 countries and territories. More information may be found at www.cfainstitute.org. (Bloomberg users can find CFA Institute at 497458Z).