Q. What is happening with Investment Foundations?

A. CFA Institute has made the difficult decision to close the current Investment Foundations program by 17 December 2021.

Q. Why did you make this decision?

A. The CFA Institute Investment Foundations Program covers the essentials of finance, ethics, and investment roles, providing a clear understanding of an ever-evolving global investment industry. As such, it requires a significant effort to keep the program and curriculum current and to maintain the technology platform.

While we recognize that Investment Foundations is used by various constituencies around the globe, we have concluded that a new product needs to be launched to meet CFA Institute standards and what’s expected from us in the marketplace.

Q. What is the deadline for completing certification for existing program participants?

A. Honoring our 180-day fulfillment period and considering that registration will close on 17 December, all certifications must be complete by mid-June 2022. We are working closely with stakeholders globally to ensure they are aware of this decision and prepared accordingly as we discontinue this offering.

Q. What exactly will happen on 17 December?

A. On 17 December, we will stop accepting new registrants to Investment Foundations. We will continue to honor the 180-day window from registration to completion, which will mean that the final Investment Foundations product will be delivered to registrants in mid-June 2022.

A. What do we tell financial organisations that currently utilize Investment Foundations?

Q. While we understand this decision might be disruptive to them, we made it because we know we can provide better value through a more current, relevant product. Therefore, rather than continue to invest in Investment Foundations, we are developing a new offering in due course. We apologize for any inconvenience this decision might cause.

A. What about CFA Institute societies? What message should they receive?

Q. While we understand this decision might be disruptive to them as well, we made it because we know we can provide better value through a more current, relevant product. We will keep societies apprised as our efforts to develop a new and enhanced product unfold.

Q. What we do we tell universities that are using Investment Foundations as part of a curriculum?

A. In most cases, universities that are using Investment Foundations will have a contract in place and we are working with our Legal department in defining these exceptions and next steps.

Q. What about in markets where regulators recognize Investment Foundations as part of a credit or waiver towards licensing or other market requirements?

A. We have identified the relevant markets and stakeholders, and key leaders in those markets will work one on one with customers and stakeholders.

Q.Isn’t Investment Foundations a feeder into the CFA Program? Will this impact the candidate pipeline?

A. While some Investment Foundations “graduates” move on to the CFA Program, the number is not significant in our overall global candidate pool. Therefore, we do not expect a material impact to the CFA Program pipeline.

Q. Isn’t Investment Foundations core to CFA Institute efforts to build more diversity, equity, and inclusion in the industry by introducing under-served populations to finance?

A. We remain proud of our efforts on DE&I and to build the pipeline of more diverse potential employees in the investment profession. We want to ensure that what we offer matches that commitment, and a new product will be better suited to that task. For example, the new offering could potentially include more content on ESG investing, FinTech, and broader topics that would appeal to a wider audience.

Q. Why did you not find a third party with which to partner to offer a product in the period between discontinuing Investment Foundations and launching a new product?

A. We have committed to launching a new product in due course and thus do not believe such a partnership makes sense at this time.

Q. It seems that CFA Institute believes the Investment Foundations curriculum is out of date. Isn’t Investment Foundations sort of Level I “light?” Does this then mean the CFA Program curriculum is out of date too?

A. Not at all. We have a robust process to constantly refresh and update the CFA Program curriculum via our Practice Analysis process. In most years, this occurs annually. In calendar year 2021 we did freeze the curriculum in order to ease the burden on candidates during the pandemic. A new curriculum is out for all levels in 2022.

Q. It’s noted that the Investment Foundations curriculum does not include enough content on ESG and FinTech. Does the CFA Program cover ESG and FinTech?

A. The CFA Program covers both ESG and FinTech.

For example, in 2019, cryptocurrency was introduced into the CFA Program curriculum in the context of how Code and Standards apply in workplaces affected by such technological innovations, and the financial applications of blockchain and distributed ledger technology. We also introduced the reading-length coverage of financial technology, covering artificial intelligence, machine learning applied to big data, and robo-advisers.

Currently, ESG content exists in 10 different readings across the three levels and across six topic areas: Quantitative Methods, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Equity, Fixed Income, Alternative Investments, and Portfolio Management. The CFA Program curriculum has ESG coverage in 16% of readings in the 2022 curriculum. In the next three to five years, as ESG standards develop and practice advances, we anticipate the coverage to reach or perhaps exceed 20%. And we now offer the Certificate in ESG Investing on a global basis.

Q. Will a Investment Foundations certificate expire when this program is discontinued?

A. No. The certificate and digital badge will not expire.

Q. What will the new learning product be? When will it be delivered?

A. It remains clear that a foundational investment offering holds real value in the industry, and we are pleased to announce that Professional Learning will develop a new product in the future. Right now, it’s premature to put a definitive timeline on the new product. The team will provide more detail around the product and its delivery, and we will keep constituents posted when a delivery timeframe becomes more feasible.

Q. Investment Foundations is currently offered at no cost. Will that change when the new learning product is launched?

A. As we are in the early days of scoping what is to come, it’s premature to know if there will be a cost associated with the new product.

Q. Are there any circumstances under which CFA Institute would decide not to create a new learning product?

A. Our current customer insights and data tell us there is a need for a foundational investment offering, and we expect to meet that need through the learning product that the Professional Team is designing. As we do with any offering, we will continuously evaluate the needs of the market and, if the data changes, we will adjust our plans.