2019 CFA exam: “We saw the field advancing more quickly than other fields,” says Stephen Horan, the GE managing director at the CFA Insitute. “This is not a passing fad.”

CFA Institute is one of the world’s most famous nonprofits, focusing on investment professionals specifically, and offering various certifications in the field, like the Investment Foundations Certificate.

It offers a three-level program, which covers a range of topics, from machine learning to artificial intelligence. Some 150,000 financial professionals have received training through this program.

Since the crypto industry continues to garner mainstream attention, the Virginia-based organization announced Monday that the 2019 CFA exam will now include topics on crypto and blockchain.

2019 CFA Exam Adds Crypto and Blockchain

As we entered the second half of the year, many forecasted that, in the crypto sector, there would be more Wall Street adoption. Based on the CFA’s July 16th announcement, it appears virtual currencies have, in fact, arrived on the Street.

Details on the 2019 CFA Exam

Next year, the CFA curriculum (level 1 and 2) will feature topics on cryptocurrency and blockchain.

The decision to add these topics comes after industry members showed a particular interest in crypto, likely due to the recent intertwining of the finance sector and the crypto industry, something that was sparked by the 2017 Bitcoin boom.

Next month, the material for the 2019 CFA exam will be out, the organization said today. If you’re planning on taking the exam, aim to log roughly 300 hours of study time.

The Community Reacts

The financial community is delighted. “More education is always good,” said Darius Sit of QCP Capital Pte, a Singapore-based crypto trading firm.

Sit’s words ring true, and he is not the only one to think this. Ripple is also trying to push for there to be more education on blockchain; the company is doing so by donating money to Universities so that there are more resources available to learn about the industry.

In the world of investment, there has been a massive expansion of crypto, and yet, many are still confused as to how it works, or how to avoid illegal activity. By having exams such as the CFA exam include crypto and blockchain material, people will be entering the industry with the knowledge they need to succeed—something which many in the industry currently don’t have.