Finance and investment professionals have been asked to invest in new and emerging digital skills to enhance their competitiveness.
“The emergence of new digital currencies and other fintech tools will continue to affect the role of finance professionals. These professionals must therefore equip themselves with the requisite knowledge in order to tap into these new opportunities,” said Dr Nicholas Letting, Kenya Accountants and Secretaries National Examinations Board (KASNEB) Chief Executive Officer.
Letting spoke during the graduation ceremony for 82 Certified Investment and Financial Analysts (CIFA) organized by the Institute of Certified Investment and Financial Analysts (ICIFA).
The occasion also marked ICIFA’s one thousand membership milestone.
Letting noted that ICIFA had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Fund Managers Association of Kenya (FMA) to train financial and investments professionals in various business and entrepreneurial skills.
He said the partnership would see financial and investment professionals undertake various capacity building initiatives to advance their competence in providing sound investment advice and management services to multiple stakeholders, including businesses, entrepreneurs, the international community and Kenyan citizens.
Kasneb, he said, had also reviewed the CIFA syllabus in 2021, and a new unit in financial modelling was introduced to enable students to apply financial modelling and analytical tools in investment analysis in response to the needs of the market.
Under the new syllabus, the professionals are now better equipped to manage a portfolio of assets, manage corporate finance, execute portfolio decisions, and analyze various investments such as equities, fixed-income investments, and derivatives.
Ms Diana Muriuki-Maina, the ICIFA CEO, said that the institute is the only professional body in Kenya mandated by the Investment and Financial Analysts Act, No. 13 of 2015 (IFA Act) to register and license investment and financial professionals both in public and private sectors.
She said that under sections 20 and 21 of the IFA Act, ICIFA members must comply with standards of professional competence and ethical practice under the ICIFA code of ethics, therefore, enhancing professionalism in the management of investment schemes.
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