CFA Institute Opens Global Registration for Claritas® Investment Certificate

Sets new education and ethics standard for financial services sector following global financial crisis

New education program after successful completion of global pilot scheme

Middle East, 21 May, 2013 - (Final) CFA Institute, the global association for investment professionals, launched the Claritas Investment Certificate yesterday at its 66^th Annual Conference (19-22 May in Singapore). The new education program provides a thorough understanding of how the investment industry works and represents a new international education and ethics standard across the financial services sector.

The new certificate has been developed in response to the financial crisis and as part of a global call to action for industry participants to play their part in addressing the overall lack of trust in financial services. This follows feedback from industry leaders, government regulators, academics, and investors which revealed a need for an accessible, foundation-level program which gives a clear understanding of the investment industry and the professional responsibilities within it.

Following the successful conclusion of a pilot scheme initiated in January, the new education program provides a thorough understanding of how the investment industry works. It represents a new education and ethics standard, complementing the existing CFA Program which awards the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation; however, it will not focus on investment professionals. It will instead target a much wider range of professionals working with investment decision makers in functions such as operations, administration, IT, HR, marketing, sales, compliance and customer service.

Claritas is a self-study course which requires between 80 to 100 hours of study over a six month period and is made up of seven modules, covering the industry, tools, instruments, structure, controls, client methods, and ethics, culminating in a single self-scheduled, online exam at a proctored testing center. On successful completion of the examination, candidates will be awarded a certificate of knowledge.

Nitin Metha, CFA, Managing Director (EMEA) at CFA Institute, expressed his excitement about the initiative:

"After two years in the making, we are pleased to announce the launch of the Claritas Investment Certificate. In recent years, financial institutions have suffered considerable reputational damage. We must work to raise the professional standards of all participants in this industry and rebuild public trust. Education is at the heart of the CFA Institute mission and the new program allows us to broaden our programs to help people working across the financial services sector."

The industry's enthusiasm for the Claritas certificate was confirmed following the success of the pilot program. Over 3,300 candidates from 70 companies in 50 countries served as pilot participants, including a number of UAE based organisations and businesses such as the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Nasdaq Dubai.

Feedback from pilot participants was also encouraging: 84 percent of participating employers said they would recommend the program to other employees and 85 percent of employees who took the course would recommend it to colleagues.

Speaking in support of the original pilot scheme, Mr Hamed Ali, Acting Chief Executive of NASDAQ Dubai, said: "As a leader in promoting financial education in the region, NASDAQ Dubai was delighted to support this important initiative by CFA Institute by putting forward 11 of its staff to take the pilot Claritas Investment Certificate exam. Adoption of the certificate as an industry standard will help to foster high technical and ethical standards in the financial services sector."

Tracy Medina Evarts, Head of Talent, at the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, also said: "ADIA works in partnership with CFA Institute to deliver a foundation level educational program for our new UAE National graduates. The support from CFA Institute helps all our graduates have a fundamental understanding of the investment industry."

John Bowman, CFA, Managing Director and Co-Lead of Education for CFA Institute confirmed the organization's commitment to establishing a new global education benchmark:

"We have an obligation to be a proactive voice in both restoring trust and raising investment acumen across the industry," said Bowman. "The Claritas certificate is a visible and tangible step for any company which wants to demonstrate an institutional commitment to ethics, offering employees a strong opportunity to develop their skills and competence in the industry."

Global registration for the Claritas Investment Certificate is now available on the CFA Institute website, at www.cfainstitute.org/programs/claritas.

About CFA Institute
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. CFA Institute has more than 116,000 members in 137 countries and territories, including 108,000 CFA charterholders, and 138 member societies. For more information, visit www.cfainstitute.org.

Claritas® Investment Certificate and the CFA® Program
Whereas the Claritas certificate program is designed to reach everyone in the investment industry who helps enable investment decision making - from client services to operations, compliance and legal, from human resources to sales and marketing - the CFA Program is intended for those who are directly involved in the investment decision-making process.

The CFA Program is a globally recognized, graduate level curriculum that provides a strong foundation of real-world investment analysis and portfolio management skills along with the practical knowledge you need in today's investment industry. It also emphasizes the highest ethical and professional standards.

About the Claritas Investment Certificate
Follow us on Twitter @Claritas for news about the Claritas Investment Certificate from @CFAInstitute.

Open to all. The Claritas Investment Certificate is for all professional disciplines in the financial services industry outside of investment roles. From client services to compliance; from human resources to IT and operations; from marketing and sales to legal. It is designed for the many different people in the financial services industry who are not directly involved in analysing or making investment decisions. Participants do not need to meet any education or experience requirements to study for the Claritas certificate.

With the Claritas Investment Certificate, learners can study online in their own time. In around 100 hours of study over an expected 3 to 6 month period, they should gain a clear understanding of all the essentials, including: ethics and regulation, structure of the industry, the various asset classes and client needs. Registration is open to corporates and individuals and available in English worldwide. The name is taken from the Latin for clarity, and everything about the Claritas certificate - from online support to the look and feel - has been designed to be as clear as possible for participants.

CFA Institute Annual Conference
The 66^th Annual CFA Institute Conference will take place in Singapore 19^th-22^nd May 2013. The Annual Conference is one of the investment industry's largest and longest running educational gatherings of investment professionals.

Pilot partner participants: Here is a list of the companies and organisations who have agreed to be named as participants: