Putting Investors First Month Concludes this Week with Opening of London Stock Exchange Today
CFA Institute, the global association of investment professionals that sets the standard for professional excellence, this morning opened the London Stock Exchange, the sixth and final stock exchange event to recognize Putting Investors First Month. The series of events, which spanned the month of May, united financial professionals throughout the world in a commitment to place investor interests above all others. Putting Investors First Month activities took place in more than 60 cities throughout the world, with participation from many of the 122,000 CFA Institute members. Putting Investors First Month is part of the organization’s Future of Finance initiative, a global effort to shape a trustworthy, forward-thinking financial industry that better serves society.
“The goal of Putting Investors First Month is to build awareness of the fiduciary duty to protect investor interests and ensure that every investment professional understands that their role is, first and foremost, to serve and protect investors,” said John Rogers, CFA, president and CEO of CFA Institute. “This initiative is an important step, but there is much work to be done to reshape the finance industry to return to its core purpose of serving investors and the greater good of society.”
Putting Investors First Month takes place in more than 60 cities worldwide
Throughout the month of May, CFA Institute members participated in the opening and closing of stock exchanges in six markets around the world: Bucharest Stock Exchange, Johannesburg Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, New York Stock Exchange, Nigerian Stock Exchange, and Toronto Stock Exchange. In the United States, government officials declared Putting Investors First Month in Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri and Washington.
A sampling of other major Putting Investors First Month events throughout the world include:
- In Australia and New Zealand, CFA Societies in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Auckland held a series of seminars where Michael Woodford, former president and CEO of the Olympus Corporation, spoke about the importance of corporate governance and ethical principles to CFA members and the investment community.
- In Cyprus, members began the effort in March with a high-profile market forecasting event, and continue to promote the Future of Finance initiative.
- In the Czech Republic, a discussion panel brought together the Central Bank, the Prague Stock Exchange, the Association for Capital Markets and two local asset management firms on the topic of retail investor protection.
- In Florida, CFA Societies Jacksonville, Orlando and Tampa Bay each hosted ‘The Future of Finance: Fiduciary Capitalism’, events which raised awareness to reinvent a sustainable and forward-looking future for the financial services industry.
- In Greece, the Chairman of the Capital Markets Board spoke at an investor protection event. The Chairman of TSPAKB (brokerage association) and the Chairman of TKYD (asset management association) moderated panels on investor protection practices in respective industries.
- In India, the Indian Association of Investment Professionals and the Indian Merchants' Chamber’s Capital Market Committee hosted a seminar that covered how investors can get better investment advice, and to emphasize investor interests with financial professionals.
- In The Netherlands, society members and the Amsterdam Institute of Finance held a symposium to discuss solutions to issues of industry effectiveness and adaptability in an effort to move toward a sustainable financial ecosystem.
- In Pakistan, members partnered with a local university and reached out to regulators and others in the financial industry to participate in webcasts and attend Putting Investors First workshops in Lahore, Islamabad, and Karachi.
- In the Philippines, members organized a retail investment conference and a financial fitness run to enhance awareness of investor rights within the financial community. More than 4,000 runners ran the course. Ten different investor rights were highlighted at each kilometer marker.
- In Romania, an event was organized with the Bucharest Stock Exchange including opening of the trading session and a panel discussion on investor’s rights and ethics culture.
- In Turkey, leaders from the CFA Society of Istanbul contributed to the strategy and action plan for the Istanbul International Financial Center to improve local financial markets and help establish Istanbul as an international financial center.
- In the United Arab Emirates, members launched an online competition inviting professionals to submit a story on how they have made a difference with investors.
- In Vancouver, society members held a half day wealth management conference with keynote speaker Terrance Odean from UC Berkeley.
“CFA societies and members around the world have made a significant effort this month to inspire the industry to ensure that investors’ rights to information, fair and honest advice and accurate assessment of risk and reward is at the core of client service,” said Rogers. “But the effort doesn’t end this week. This event is part of a larger culture shift in finance to commit to putting investors first and shaping a more trustworthy financial industry that better serves investors.”
For more information about Putting Investors First Month, the Future of Finance initiative and the Statement of Investor Rights, a declaration of the conduct investors are entitled to expect from financial service providers, visit www.cfainstitute.org/FutureFinance.
CFA Institute is the global association of investment professionals that sets the standard for professional excellence and credentials. The organization is a champion for ethical behavior in investment markets and a respected source of knowledge in the global financial community. The end goal: to create an environment where investors’ interests come first, markets function at their best, and economies grow.