KLSE Diploma Expands Group Of Qualified Securities Industry Professionals

Graduates of the Research Institute of Investment Analysts Malaysia (RIIAM) Diploma in Investment Analysis will expand the present group of qualified professionals in the securities industry. RIIAM is the training arm of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange. At the fifth graduation ceremony of the RIIAM Diploma in Investment Analysis, Chairman Dato' Mohd Azlan Hashim said since the inception of the diploma programme in 1994, graduates of the programme are part of the line-up of qualified and trained professionals in the industry. "These professionals continue to contribute to the growth and progress of the Malaysian securities industry. "As a further indication of our commitment to continue developing qualified securities industry personnel, we are pleased to announce that the KLSE Group will offer 15 scholarships for the RIIAM Diploma in Investment Analysis for the next academic year," he said. The scholarship will cover the total tuition fees for the diploma programme and is available for qualified candidates at all three centres in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Kuching offering the RIIAM Diploma. The RIIAM Diploma in Investment Analysis is developed in association with the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT). In continuing to expand and improve the diploma programme, much progress has been achieved. The RIIAM Diploma has the full recognition of the Securities Commission which exempts graduates of this diploma from the written examination when they apply for the trainee dealer's representatives programme. Graduates of the RIIAM Diploma intending to proceed with the bachelor programme either at RMIT University in Melbourne or the twinning college - the Metropolitan College in Kuala Lumpur - would be exempted from several subjects in the bachelor programme. RIIAM is also working with local universities to offer the diploma programme concurrently with their bachelors' degree programmes. To keep the programme applicable to the working environment, the contents of the RIIAM Diploma are closely developed and taught in the Malaysian context with such modules as the Malaysian Securities Markets and Investment Industry Law. Mohd Azlan said the RIIAM Diploma in Investment Analysis has also been planned and developed as one of the most attractive and affordable professional development programmes offered in the industry. In addition to the diploma programme, RIIAM also offers the Malaysian securities industry courses, designed for trainee dealer's representatives, remisiers, as well as the investing public to improve their knowledge of the securities industry. To stay at the forefront of international development in the securities industry, RIIAM is an active member of international organisations such as the Asian Securities Analysts Federation (ASAF) and the International Council of Investment Associations (ICIA). RIIAM was also accorded the honour of hosting the ASAF 99 Conference and Annual General Meeting in October 1999. The interchange of ideas and expertise in these organisations are beneficially channelled into the programmes developed by RIIAM. Mohd Azlan said all of these efforts achieved the important objective of contributing to the expansion of investor education and the enhancement in the quality, consistency and timeliness of information to investors. "In providing timely and quality information, investors are thus encouraged to invest more on fundamentals and less on sentiments and perceptions. "With greater investor information available, industry professionals - dealers and remisiers, many of whom have benefitted from the RIIAM's diploma, are better able to guide investors in making well-considered investment decisions," he said.