The agreement inaugurates development by the three bodies of a Global Capital Markets Qualification (GCMQ) examination that will enable capital markets specialists to move easily between the United States and the United Kingdom. For U.S. candidates, this means that they can choose to take the new exam rather than the General Securities Registered Representative (Series 7) Examination. It is anticipated that U.S. securities advisers, dealers, and specialists in wholesale capital markets who are currently certified under the Series 7 would not have to requalify.
NYSE Regulation owns, develops, and maintains the Series 7, which is the most well known examination in the securities industry, as well as other qualification examinations. In 2004, a total of 61,870 candidates took NYSE qualification examinations, of which the majority of the candidates took the Series 7.
"Given the historic ties between our two nations, this agreement is a logical place to begin the task of creating more transportability of qualifications standards for securities professionals worldwide,” said Richard G. Ketchum, chief regulatory officer, the New York Stock Exchange. “Since capital markets have long led the way in globalization, it only makes sense to have a common testing standard that provides increased flexibility while maintaining high standards of knowledge in our respective marketplaces.”
Simon Culhane, chief executive of the U.K. Securities & Investment Institute, said, “As markets are becoming increasingly global, we are excited about the possibilities for this new exam. We fully expect it to become the de facto benchmark for staff working in the investment banking arena and foresee this as only the beginning. This exam is going to facilitate the global transfer of personnel into new jurisdictions and we see this qualification expanding into other countries. We are proud to be at the forefront of this initiative.”
The new exam will be comprised of two units. The core GCMQ unit will test the knowledge candidates require to perform job functions that are common to entry-level capital markets professionals employed by member firms of NYSE and NASD, and by Financial Services Authority authorized and regulated firms in the U.K. The second regulatory unit will assess knowledge specific to the respective jurisdictions. The U.S. Capital Markets rules and Regulations Exam (the “U.S. Rules Exam”) will be developed by NYSE Regulation and NASD to assess knowledge of the U.S. regulatory system. For the U.K., the SII will develop and administer the U.K. Capital Markets Rules and Regulation Exam (the “U.K. Rules Exam”). This will assess knowledge of the U.K. securities and investment industry’s rules and regulations.
The exam will be developed over the next 15 months for launch in late 2006. The plan is to make the core GCMQ unit available to candidates globally via computer-based testing.
Other qualification examinations that the NYSE develops and maintains are the:
- Compliance Official (Series 14)
- Supervisory Analyst (Series 16)
- Research Analyst (Series 86/87)
- U.K. Limited Registered Representative (Series 17)
- Canadian Limited Registered Representative—includes options (Series 37)
- Canadian Limited Registered Representative—excludes options (Series 38).
The NYSE also works collaboratively with other self-regulatory organizations on jointly owned qualifications examinations, including the General Securities Sales Supervisor (Series 9/10) exam. They are also administered at computer-based testing centers.
Qualification examinations serve a public protection function by helping to ensure that registrants are competent to perform their jobs. In light of this purpose, qualification examinations must reflect current industry regulations, practices and products, and assess the knowledge, skills and abilities associated with critical job functions. NYSE follows a number of steps designed to ensure that the examinations are valid, psychometrically sound, and comply with appropriate test development guidelines such as those delineated in the EEOC Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures and the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing set forth by the American Psychological Association (APA), American Educational Research Association (AERA), and the National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME).
About NYSE Regulation
Nearly 400 of the largest securities firms in America are members of the New York Stock Exchange. These firms service 92 million customer accounts, or 90 percent of the total public customer accounts handled by broker-dealers, with total assets of over $3 trillion. They operate from 19,000 branch offices around the world and employ 146,000 registered personnel. Nearly 700 employees, or more than 40 percent of the Exchange’s staff, work for NYSE Regulation, which consists of four divisions: Market Surveillance, Member Firm Regulation, Enforcement, and Listed Company Compliance, as well as a Risk Assessment Unit and Dispute Resolution/Arbitration. To learn more, visit our website at www.nyseregulation.com.
About Securities & Investment Institute
The Securities & Investment Institute (www.sii.org.uk) was formed in 1992 by members of the London Stock Exchange. Its mission is to set standards of professional excellence and integrity for the securities and investment industry, providing qualifications and promoting the highest level of competence to its members, firms, and others.
The Securities & Investment Institute is now the pre-eminent professional body for those who work in the securities and investment industry in the U.K. Over 16,000 members benefit from a programme of professional training and development. The Institute is the principal awarding body for industry qualifications and last year its examinations attracted 35,000 candidates. For further information on Securities & Investment Institute contact Lora Benson, Press Officer, at 011-44-207-645-0662 or lora.benson@sii.org.uk
