The Institute was established in 1984 at Hyderabad, India to cater to the training and certification needs of candidates interested in becoming qualified financial analysts. The Institute was earlier administering the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Program, which is now being offered by the ICFAI University. On successful completion, the candidates are eligible to seek membership in the Council, for the development and regulation of the profession of Chartered Financial Analysts in India.

In the context of the rapid strides made by the Indian economy in the seventies and the early eighties, the financial markets have grown phenomenally in breadth and depth bringing about an extensive network of financial institutions and services in the country. Gradual opening up of the economy, and the increase in corporatization of Indian industry witnessed a remarkable rise in the number of corporates accessing the capital markets and the emergence of a wide spectrum of innovative instruments. These have rendered the tasks of financial management and control more complex and challenging and, at the same time, exciting and rewarding.

In the wake of these developments and to cope with these challenges, the Institute was set-up as a non-profit educational society in 1984, at Hyderabad.

The ICFAI University was established in several states in India. Each University is an independent legal entity.

The Institute, through one of its associates, closely works with Association of Certified International Investment Analysts, Switzerland. The CIIA® examinations are conducted in India.

Organisational Chart

The Institute functions under the overall guidance of the Board of Governors comprising of CFAs, senior government officials, bankers and corporate executives. The Institute has a team of qualified and experienced professional staff and faculty members.

The pedagogies of the CFA Program are designed to equip the candidates with the state-of-the art tools and techniques and to broaden their fields of understanding and experience in the five focus areas namely Financial Markets; Analysis and Valuation; Portfolio Management; Mutual and Other Funds; and Code of Conduct. Comprehensive courseware consisting of textbooks, workbooks, select readings and model questions and answers are made available to the candidates. In addition, the candidates also receive “Chartered Financial Analyst” a professional monthly magazine.

THE CFA COUNCIL

The ICFAI University, Tripura has recently established The CFA Council as a constituent body for the development and regulation of the CFA Profession on sound ethical lines. All the CFAs from the ICFAI University, Tripura are eligible to become members of CFAC. All members are required to abide by the code of ethics of CFAC.

The Code of Conduct covers, inter alia, the following aspects:

• Integrity: A CFA shall conduct himself* with integrity and dignity in his dealings with the public, clients, customers, employers, employees, professionals and fellow analysts.
• Ethical Behavior: A CFA shall conduct himself and shall encourage others to practice the financial analysis profession in a professional and ethical manner that will reflect credit on himself and his profession and his organization/employer where or for whom he is working.
• Professional Competence: A CFA shall act with competence and shall strive to maintain and improve his competence and that of others in the profession.
• Objectivity: A CFA shall be fair in his dealings and must not be biased or prejudiced. He shall try to maintain objectivity and impartiality towards one and all.
• Professional Independence: A CFA shall use proper care and exercise independent professional judgement in all his professional activities.
• Public Trust: A CFA shall assume the basic responsibility to place the interest of clients, prospective clients and employers ahead of his own. He shall seek to enhance public confidence in his profession.

PROFESSIONAL ETHICS

All members of the Council are required to abide by a code of professional ethics which enjoins that they should:

• Conduct themselves with integrity and dignity and act in an ethical manner in their dealings with the public, clients, employers, employees and fellow professionals;
• Act with competence and strive to maintain and improve their competence; and
• Use proper care and exercise independent professional judgment.

The practice of professional ethics is largely a matter of conscience and the determination of members to distinguish between right and wrong.

The Council is mandated to ensure that professional ethics are followed by all the members.

The CFA Council will put in place a suitable mechanism to enforce the Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct. In addition, CFAs in various Indian cities have formed themselves into associations. There are 12 CFA Associations in various cities across India. The CFA fraternity in India has over 6,000 members. Visit: www.thefinancialanalyst.org for details. These local CFA Associations conduct regularly seminars, talks and workshops for the benefit of members and candidates.

Recognizing the demands of the emerging knowledge economy, the ICFAI University has forayed into publications by establishing the Icfai University Press, which has a diversified portfolio of publications i.e., magazines, journals and books in the areas of finance, management, economics and law. The publications are designed to deliver knowledge and cutting edge skills that are crucial resource for today’s corporate executives. The Icfai University Press caters to the needs of academia, managers, consultants, finance, management and law professionals, entrepreneurs and students with its rich portfolio of publications. The Icfai University Press publishes professional books of enduring value on select themes in various areas including finance, management, e-business and information technology. For details of publications please visit www.iupindia.org.