The Tribune

The Bahamas' Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Society has received the global network's 2018 Excellence Award for its initiative to build market integrity.

It received the CFA Institute's 2018 Society Excellence Award on May 10, 2018, at its global leadership conference in Hong Kong. The award, part of the Institute's annual Society Excellence Awards programme, recognises the successful execution of the inaugural CFA Society The Bahamas Financial Literacy Series.

This was an initiative designed to better prepare Bahamians to manage their financial affairs. Aneka Rolle-Beneby, vice-president of CFA Society The Bahamas, and Jerome Franks, treasurer of CFA Society The Bahamas, accepted the award on behalf of the society at the Kowloon Shangri-La, Hong Kong.

The Financial Literacy Series offered an educational program teaching fundamental financial principles. It was structured as five seminar-style sessions at the University of The Bahamas, running in successive weeks from January 24, 2018, to February 22, 2018.

Each session covered a distinct topic area of focus: Budgeting and Savings; Investing; Good Debt versus Bad Debt; Retirement and Home Ownership. Leaders and members of CFA Society The Bahamas completed all of the marketing, logistical planning, content development and presentation delivery.

Each of the sessions was held at the Harry C Moore Library Auditorium at the University of The Bahamas, and were open and free of charge to members of the public. Recordings of the sessions and presentation materials are available on the CFA Society The Bahamas website: https://www.cfasociety.org/bahamas.

Robert Turnquest, president of CFA Society The Bahamas, said: "We are honoured to be recognised globally for our work in promoting financial literacy in the Bahamian community. It was a pleasure to lend our time and expertise to the benefit of society. We look forward to continuing this initiative for years to come."

The CFA Institute Society Awards Programme was established in 2006 to identify and reward efforts of societies in the delivery of the CFA Institute mission, and provide value to the investment professionals they represent. There were 132 nominations submitted globally in 14 award categories, representing 51 societies, this year.

The citation for the Strategic Initiative: Build Market Integrity award said: "Setting standards and advocating for professional excellence in your local community are activities that ultimately benefit society by improving both investor protections and investor outcomes. It is critical to improve the integrity of the overall investment management environment, including increasing investor protection, market fairness, and ethics and professional standards."