In April, CFA Institute and Toronto CFA Society joined together to celebrate the launch of the updated CFA Institute Global Body of Investment Knowledge (GBIK). In addition to opening the market at the Toronto Stock Exchange, CFA Institute and Toronto CFA Society marked the occasion by hosting an educational seminar for journalists on how to read public company financial statements and identify financial accounting red flags, as well as a luncheon program on the impact the recent financial crisis has had on investment theory and practice.

“The GBIK is one of the most comprehensive education frameworks available and will serve as a roadmap for the development of our educational products for many years to come,” said Tom Robinson, CFA, managing director of education at CFA Institute. “More importantly, it was developed by investment practitioners for investment practitioners and will be revised annually to ensure CFA Institute education content continues to apply to the real world.”

The GBIK forms a comprehensive program of knowledge for the investment profession. Both CFA Institute and its member societies use it to guide those in the global finance industry – novice through expert, generalist through specialist – in meeting their continuing education needs. Not only does it include commonly accepted models, it also encompasses views well outside mainstream investment thinking, ones that are based on research that has been, or is still being debated. As such, it serves as a resource to all CFA Institute lifelong learning activities, including publications, conferences, webcasts, and is the benchmark for the CFA Program Candidate Body of Knowledge. CFA Institute also uses the GBIK to develop specialized bodies of knowledge for its members practicing in areas such as private wealth management and investment performance measurement.

Special thanks to Tom Trainor, CFA for initiating the GBIK launch in Toronto.