Various Certification Courses For A Finance Professional

• CA Pravesh Rathi


• 11 Nov 2016

Certifications are earned from a professional society, university, a certification body, or from a private certifier, for some specific domain expertise. Some certifications must be renewed periodically, or may be valid for a specific period of time (e.g., the lifetime of the product upon which the individual is certified). As a part of a complete renewal of an individual’s certification, it is common for the individual to show evidence of continued learning.

When I began creating the list of top finance certification courses , I thought of keeping the MBA in Finance out of the list as its already covered under Management section.

While CFA is the Ram Baan and is a must have for an aspirant seeking a job in finance domain, it is to be noted that NCFM and Financial Modeling are two great Desi certifications which you can have to improve your resume (atleast in the short run). NCFM offers lot of short term finance courses and some of the them like Currency, Interest rates and Equity Derivatives can always be picked up to improve your resume for finance jobs.

Also unlike CFA, exams for these are conducted throughout the year and hence you can appear for the same at your own convenient time. While you can enrol for NCFM modules directly from NSE website.Let have a look on the various certification course in Finance field:

CFA-

• The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Program is a professional credential offered internationally by the American-based CFA Institute (formerly the Association for Investment Management and Research, or AIMR) to investment and financial professionals.
• CFA is one of the most popular generic certification. Requiring at least 2 years of commitment to clear a 3-stage examination, and costing a minimum of $2400, it is highly advised that one be serious about it before enrolling.

FRM-

• Almost as popular as CFA, the FRM (Financial Risk Manager) certification from GARP (Global Association of Risk Professionals) costs around $1000 (provided you register early enough to be eligible for the lower fee and is spread over 2 tests that can be taken either together or at an interval of 6 months.
• While CFA is more generic in nature, covering financial statement analysis, corporate finance, economics, wealth management, and derivatives, the FRM is more focused on risk and derivatives.
• If you were to choose to become a Financial Risk Manager, then you would be expected to manage the risk that accompanies any investments and would like to broaden their knowledge of the same.
• This course is suitable for people seeking employment in risk management in banks, corporates, non-banking financial firms and corporate houses.

Anti-Money Laundering Certification-

• Continuing on the path of greater specialization, we have the CAMS (Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist) certification for professionals working in the domain of Anti-Money Laundering and FCC (Financial Crime Compliance). Only 1 examinations that costs close to $1500.

Association of Certified Fraud Examiners-

• The Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) is a credential awarded by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE). The ACFE association is a provider of anti-fraud training and education.
• Together with more than 75,000 members, the ACFE seeks to reduce business fraud world-wide and to inspire public confidence in the integrity and objectivity within the profession.
• CFE training involves imparting knowledge of complex financial transactions and understanding of forensic methods, law, and of how to resolve allegations of fraud.
• Generally, applicants for CFE certification must have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree or equivalent from an institution of higher education. Two years of professional experience related to fraud can be substituted for each year of college. Become a CFE in Fees: $350.

NCFM Modules (NSE – National Stock Exchange of India Limited)-

• NCFM offers a comprehensive range of modules covering many different areas in finance.
• The 40+ NCFM modules spread over foundation (beginner), intermediate, and advanced cover a wide range of financial topics from the basics of financial markets and the OTC derivatives market, to mutual funds, venture capital, algorithmic trading and other advanced concepts.
• Each certification costs around $100.
• There are no restrictions of age or qualifications for registration to the NCFM program or for taking the certification examination. Computer literacy will be beneficial while answering this online patterned test.

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Vskills Govt. Certification-

• Vskills is a special, low-cost certification program run by the Govt of India. Most (>90%) certifications are priced in the range of  Rs 3000–5000. Although it has certifications for a wide variety of industries (Design, IT, Legal, Marketing etc), the below are relevant for finance professionals:
• Accounting, Banking, and Finance:(42 certifications for Equity analysis, FI analysis, AML/KYC, Portfolio management, M&A, Credit risk, Basel III, IFRS etc).
  • Suitable for everyone, the ICAEW Certificate in Finance, Accounting and Business (ICAEW CFAB) teaches essential practical skills and knowledge for today’s competitive business world.
  • The essentials of business, accounting and finance are covered across six modules. You can take these in any order and at any time. All of the exams are examined in English. You gain a certificate for each module you sit and pass to help demonstrate your achievements as you progress. 
  • Once you complete all of the ICAEW CFAB exam modules, you’ll receive a certificate of achievement from ICAEW – a world-leader of the accountancy and finance profession.

IIBF-

• The Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (IIBF) is India’s premier institute in banking and finance education, aiming for professional excellence.IIBF is a professional body of banks, financial institutions and their employees in India. With its membership of over 700 banks and financial institutions as institutional members and about 300000 of their employees as individual members, IIBF is the largest Institute of its kind in the world.
• The Flagship Courses of IIBF are JAIIB or its equivalent PG Diploma in Banking & finance (DBF) and CAIIB.
• Other courses offered are -Diploma in Treasury Investment & Risk Management, Diploma in International Banking & Finance, Diploma in Banking & Technology, Diploma Examination for Micro Finance Professionals, Diploma in Comm Derivatives for Bankers, Advance Diploma in Urban Co-operative Banking, Diploma in Advanced Wealth Management and various Certificate programs.

These are offered in distance mode. The pedagogy of Distance Learning offered by the Institute is (i) publishing specific courseware for each paper/examination; (ii) publishing work books; (iii) tutorials through accredited institutions; (iv) contact classes; (v) virtual classes; (vi) e-learning through portal; (vii) campus training for selected courses, etc.The courses are considered to be comprehensive as well as exhaustive and recognized as the best in the field in India.