Message from the Board – Key highlights for the quarter and beyond

Dear Members,

As we gather momentum in the second half of 2024, I am honoured to address our vibrant community of investment professionals which continues to inspire me with its unwavering commitment to excellence, knowledge sharing, and ethical conduct.

The membership renewal is currently underway and we have observed an increase in total numbers; a testament to the value the society members acknowledge. The Charter award ceremonies for welcoming our new members would commence from October onwards. The CFA Society is driven by the contributions of it’s members, and I take this opportunity to urge members to actively participate in various activities of the society.

The past quarter has been nothing short of remarkable. Our events, both virtual and in-person, have fostered meaningful connections and enriched our professional lives. The city Chapter specific marquee events like the Annual Fintech Event in Bangalore, explored the intersection of technology and finance. The IFSC GIFT City event in Ahmedabad introduced the participants to a fast-emerging global financial centre. Since April 2024, CFA Society India has organized a series of diverse and enriching events. These include speaker sessions like “India in the Global Context” by Ashish Goyal, which was held in Mumbai on April 3rd, and workshops such as the one on setting up an investment services practice, conducted online on April 13th. Other notable speaker sessions included Prof. Nelson Lacey’s discussions on valuation techniques in both private and public markets, hosted in Hyderabad and Mumbai in mid-April. The calendar also featured numerous fun networking events, webinars, and workshops across various regions. Some  partnerships event were the FTSE Russell for investment compass and ETF conferences in May. Over the full financial year 2023 -24, there were a total of 119 events conducted across chapters. These events offered attendees opportunities for professional development and earning PL credits.

Further, the upcoming schedule for CFA Society India promises an array of insightful and career-enhancing events. Starting with a pan-India online CFA recruitment drive, the calendar also includes a workshop on integrating ESG analysis into investment processes in Pune and an AI workshop in Bangalore. August will see the 9th India Wealth Management Conference in Mumbai, offering extensive learning with stellar speakers, followed by a series of sessions on mastering long-term success in investments across Chennai and Delhi delivered by Satish Swamy CFA. Networking opportunities continue with a unique bowling event in Bangalore on August 10th. The “Masters at Work” conference in Kolkata is scheduled on September 21^st. The upcoming calendar also includes partnership events like Aswath Damodaran Valuation Masterclass, the ETFGI Global ETFs Insights and the Morningstar Investment conference, providing high-value learning and networking opportunities.

The career services committee embarked on a series of programs to ensure upskilling and skill gap fulfilment. We hosted Leadership Development Series for the members. As a very successful new initiative, we organised an awards night for best employers across various categories in April. This was received with great enthusiasm in the employer community. Evaluated more than 400 employers to assess the extent to which they collaborate with CFA Society India and CFA Institute, and support CFA Charterholders and candidates. Top 20 employers from that list were recognized and felicitated in the presence of Margaret Franklin, CFA, President and CEO of CFA Institute. Additionally, career webinars on commercial banking, early stage investing; and transaction advisory were organised. Going forward employer meets; valuation workshops, career days and talent summits are planned across chapters

The Research and Advocacy committee continues to work with members to propagate standards of best practices, engaging with regulators and media to raise standards in the profession, collaborating with investors to promote awareness of the CFA Charter and increasing financial acumen among professional and retail investors. Our Women in Finance : Femtor initiative featured eight mentor-mentee pairs. An Annual Diversity Event in March to mark the occasion of International Women’s Day was attended by more than 100 members and candidates, majority of them being women.

The Public Awareness Committee revamped our communication approach with curating more short form content. The podcast channel achieved a global peak rank of 5 in ‘Investing’ category in India on Apple Podcasts and featured in the global top 60 all time best-sellers list by Apple in ‘Investing’ category. Numerous members contributed content, which was featured in our quarterly newsletters. The official Linkedin page saw rapid growth with 80k+ followers and ranked in top 3 among the peer group pages. The official YouTube channel crossed 50,000 subscribers, +2M lifetime views. We increased engagement on posts by creating space on our website to recognise volunteers and new member journeys which encouraged reposting. The newly constituted media and outreach subcommittee amplified the Society’s brand through media collaborations, press coverage, etc. We collaborated with TimesAscent.com and Jagran Josh for their financial literacy campaigns.

Finally, on a personal note, I urge all Society members to volunteer. In my opinion, clearing the multiple levels or having a CFA designation on renewing your membership is only a first step. The more you give, the more you get. Volunteering is a great way to give back and shape the agenda of your society.