CFA Institute says Saudi is the core of regional expansion: US accrediting group CFA Institute plans to double the number of members here to around 1k over the next three years as part of its Middle East expansion, President and CEO Marg Franklin told Bloomberg in an interview yesterday. It also plans to increase its candidate pool by 20% annually, Franklin said, adding that the non-profit educational organization for chartered financial analysts is exploring the addition of Arabic certification and Islamic finance training to meet high demand.

CFA Institute? The organization’s Chartered Financial Analyst accreditation is the benchmark for everything finance from wealth advisors to analysts. Its CFA Program sees a three-part exam that tests the foundations of investment tools, valuing assets, portfolio management and others, according to its website.

What she said: “Most of this is really around trajectory and direction,” she said on the sidelines of the CFA Institute’s Middle East Investment Conference in Riyadh. “When you look at the last five years, the ambition is clear,” she added. “It’s a young population and they know the most important levers that will help it to become a more diversified, resilient economy and much bigger global player”.

In numbers: The Kingdom currently has 520 CFA members, with women accounting for 12% of total memberships, CFA board member Fahad Kordi told Bloomberg. Figures for women membership are up from 8% in 2022, Kordi, who is also Head of Investments and Structured Funding at Banque Saudi Fransi said.

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