Certificate in Investment Performance Measurement

The Certificate in Investment Performance Measurement (CIPM) is a professional accreditation in the field of investment performance analysis in the United States. It includes investment performance measurement and attribution. It is offered by the CIPM Association, a body associated with the CFA Institute.

Professional accreditation

Historically, global investment firms have been subject to a diverse patchwork of international laws, regulations, and market customs that dictate how investment performance results can be measured and advertised. For example, the well-known warning that "past investment returns may not be predictive of future investment returns", has long been encouraged in advertisements for managed funds by regulators such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Recognising that there was likely to be continuous growth in the worldwide patchwork of regulation covering investment return calculations and advertising, the global investment management industry has agreed on a set of standards known as the GIPS (Global Investment Performance Standards).

The GIPS standards relate to the following issues:

 * data maintenance for calculating investment returns
 * principles on how to calculate returns
 * ethical principles relating to investment returns calculations
   and presentation
 * advertising guideline on investment returns

Because GIPS is a professional body of knowledge, it became clear that there should be a proper accreditation for professionals in this field. This led the CFA Institute to form the CIPM Association.

Candidates for the CIPM qualification must adhere to the same body of professional ethics and professional conduct^[1] that has been devised for Chartered Financial Analysts by the CFA Institute. To obtain the Certificate, one must sequentially pass two examinations (known respectively as Principles and Expert). The content of each of these examinations includes 13% on ethics and professional standards. A certain level of practical experience is also required before obtaining the certificate^[2]. After obtaining the Certificate, Certificate-holders are required to engage in continuing education, and to file a Professional Conduct Statement (PCS) annually. Misconduct can render a certificate-holder liable to professional discipline.

Trademarks

GIPS, CFA, and CIPM are registered trademarks of the CFA Institute.

References

1. ^ CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct
2. ^ CIPM FAQ

External links

• CIPM Association web site
• GIPS Standards web site
• History of the GIPS Standards
• What is CIPM?