A varied career, with trust as its cornerstone

Seasoned investment professional and Vice President of CFA Society Hong Kong, David Ching, explains how CFA Institute qualifications have paved the way for a varied and successful investment career.

How the CFA® charterholder path opens doors in finance

With an engineering degree from the University of Oxford, David’s decision to become a CFA® charterholder was instrumental in his pursuit of a career in finance. He says that getting that initial break into the sector was less about luck and more about the gravitas of having CFA Institute on his CV. “After I graduated from Oxford University, it was a relatively difficult time economically and very difficult to get into finance. Fortunately, being a CFA charterholder helped open a lot of doors for me.”

Since then, David has worked across multiple finance sectors in both London and Hong Kong, starting out as a sell-side analyst in equities research for 15 years before moving to the buy side as a hedge fund portfolio manager. For the past two years he has worked in the venture capital industry focusing on emerging technologies, including AI and blockchain.

Hong Kong as a leading global financial center

Hong Kong plays host to a thriving international financial center, placing behind only New York and London in the global rankings of finance centers published by Z/Yen and the China Development Institute. Those working in the financial system are hungry for opportunity, David says. “CFA Institute sits in the middle of it all because it represents the investment community in each of these asset classes, sell side, buy side, regulators and stakeholders.”

“A lot of those key members are also CFA charterholders. And throughout my career, that has really helped to build instant trust,” David explains.

We're dealing with people's money, their pensions, their life savings, so the trust element is very important. When you're negotiating a deal or a big transaction, there’s instantly a higher level of trust if you know the person on the other side of the deal table has a CFA charter.

David Ching Vice President CFA Society Hong Kong

Hong Kong has moved fast in its adoption of new tech, buoyed by China’s desire to develop Hong Kong as a center of excellence for emerging technologies. As the Vice President of CFA Society Hong Kong, David was instrumental in establishing a Web 3 & Fintech committee as a platform for interested members, non-members and industry practitioners to develop their understanding of these emerging technologies and the opportunities they present both in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region and around the world.

For CFA charterholders, the community aspects of membership are an essential and invaluable component, allowing investment professionals to grow their networks, connect with peers, and capitalize on opportunities to enhance expertise and career prospects, David says.

Growth of private credit in Asia

Private credit is an important developing trend in the region, David says. It has evolved in the past five years or so from a niche market into a major corporate funding source, driven in part by what once might have been private equity investments. “A lot of private equity has been facing challenges of getting even higher valuations. So, PE funds are exploring alternative ways to deploy capital, and a lot of investors prefer private credit because it’s a more stable format,” David explains.

It has resulted in strong growth in the number of candidates opting to study the CFA Institute Private Markets and Alternative Investments Certificate, David says. As co-chair of the Candidate Services Committee, which provides a range of support services to students, David is well-placed to comment on the certificate’s popularity.

Rising demand for sustainable investing skills

Meanwhile, oversight from policymakers and more stringent corporate reporting regulations are continuing to drive interest in corporate sustainability. “We definitely haven't seen a slowdown in the focus on sustainability in this part of the world,” David says. “I see it as a very important trend.”

The introduction in 2023 of Project Evergreen, the world's first government-issued tokenized green bond by central bank Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) set out to consolidate Hong Kong’s status as a leading green and sustainable finance hub.

CFA Institute offers a comprehensive range of sustainable investing programs to provide the skills and knowledge needed in a rapidly evolving industry spanning, climate investment and sustainable investment strategies.

It's really helpful for those who practice sustainability investing or sell side, but even for those not directly involved specifically in sustainability investing, having that knowledge helps to understand investor preferences.

David Ching Vice President CFA Society Hong Kong

The Sustainable Investing Certificate (SIC) was one of the first programs to be included in Hong Kong's Pilot Green and Sustainable Finance Capacity Building Support Scheme. Under the scheme, professionals are eligible for reimbursement of 80% of the course fee, and 100% in the case of students. 

CFA Institute has established agreements with Hong Kong universities with the SIC forming the foundation of sustainability streams of their degree courses. Hong Kong Baptist University offers an elective course across six Master's programs for which SIC is the required learning material. Meanwhile, one of the courses at Hong Kong Metropolitan University allows students to substitute completion of SIC for the final exam.

In China, the Shanghai government has added SIC to its Shanghai Overseas Qualification Recognition List. It gives certificate holders a range of benefits, including streamlined visa and residency processing, accelerated access to the Overseas Talent Residence Permit, and recognition of overseas professional experience.