agents fear they can't measure up

as part of the new safeguards to protect retail investors, a new test, namely the capital markets and financial advisory services examination module 9a (M9A) for insurance agents marketing life insurance products has been introduced by the monetary authority of singapore.

this test applies to those who join the industry from next year but existing agents have been given the dateline by june 2013 to pass it.

the test will be based on the knowledge and understanding of the advantages and risks in structured products, especially structured investment-linked policies (ILPs), and covers a variety of derivatives in the market, both on-the-exchange and over-the-counter.

those who are exempted from the test must have a degree or higher qualification in finance, financial engineering or computational finance, or have chartered financial analyst (CFA) qualification awarded by the CFA Institute. i reckon a minority will have the specified higher qualifications and therefore, the majority in the financial industry will have to sit for the test.

the test will be administered by the singapore college of insurance, a non-profit company incorporated in 1994 and will cost between $107 and $151.94 for first-timers, and between $85.60 and $130.54 for subsequent attempts.

on the new test, MAS have also said they will be reviewing the entry requirements of four O-level passes, given that our investor population is becoming better educated and more sophiscated.

my comments:

these days, it is becoming increasingly harder to stay in the financial industry as there are already many veterens who may not have the minimum educational qualifications but are chinese-educated as well.

on the new compulsory test, mr tommy wee, president of the insurance and financial practitioners assocation of singapore said:

"it is definitely a daunting prospect for some of the older agents who are chinese-educated and may have difficulty understanding the syllabus."

and i reckon the financial industry will continue to support our government's initiatives to enhance and or raise the level of professionalism of practitioners.

but with our economy expected to slow to a range of 1% to 3% in 2012 and the financial services sector's growth to come down to 4.2% (from a projected 9.4% this year) and the new test being compulsory for all financial advisors, i can't help but wonder how the new year will unfold for the financial industry and all financial advisers.