Mercury to conduct classes for CFA Level II program
Thursday, 22 January 2015 00:00
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The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation has become known as the symbol of professional excellence within the global investment community. Around the world, employers and investors recognise the CFA designation as the definitive standard for measuring competence and integrity in the fields of portfolio management and investment analysis.
The CFA Program with its three levels of examination verifies a candidate’s ability to apply investment principles across all areas of the investment decision‐making process, with a minimum time required to clear all the three exams in around 2.5 years.
Both international and local companies have been known to give priority to CFA candidates and charter holders when hiring for their finance related positions, as CFA charter holders are recognised as superior achievers due to the high degrees of dedication and hard work they demonstrated during the preparation of the certificate. As of July 2014, there are approximately 120,000 CFA members in 35 countries. The largest employers of CFA Charter holders are JP Morgan, UBS, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and RBC.
In Sri Lanka, Mercury has garnered a reputation as an institute of choice to study for the CFA Program.
Mercury conducts classes for all three levels and will soon commence classes for the level two of this prestigious degree.
Mercury Institute Business Development Manager Thilina Ukwatta stated, “The Level II CFA exam is considered by most to be the most difficult of the three exams. Whereas the first exam was largely conceptual and tested your basic understanding of a broad range of information, the second exam takes that same broad range but tests detailed concepts and data interpretation. On top of this, the exam is extremely formula intense. Students will be responsible for calculating two and three-part formulas in almost every study session.
“Level II deals mainly with asset valuation. Therefore students must be able to apply the tools and concepts emphasised in Level I to analyse and value investments, and should also have a thorough understanding of capital market theory and industry and company analysis. It covers Ethical and Professional Standards, Corporate Finance and Economics, Financial Reporting and Analysis and Quantitative Methods.”
Mercury with over 10 of years of experience in training candidates towards these exams has an expert panel of tutors that bring their passion, enthusiasm and industry experience to the classroom making sessions highly engaging and motivational. They will complete all areas in the curriculum specifically addressed via a question and answer (Q&A) approach including theoretical knowledge being discussed and covering over 360 exam oriented questions equivalent to three exam sets that are discussed comprehensively and comprises of 50 hours of revision.
A testament to some of the successes attained was affirmed by both students and employers such as Surath Perera, Fund Manager of Comtrust Asset Management Ltd, who stated that studying for the CFA Program at Mercury had proved mutually beneficial for both him and his employer as it was able to address new areas that helped him to enhance his work at office, whilst Aruna Perera, Senior Vice President – Training and Knowledge Management of Copal Amba said that the CFA Program has proved itself to be an entryway to a career in global capital markets. He said that the qualification equips young professionals with a global identity as well as a powerful combination of technical skills, practices, discipline, and ethics.
