Certificate of the Federal Financial Markets Service: how to receive?

The Federal Service for Financial Markets (FFMS) of Russia deals with the regulation of the stock market as a whole, the operations conducted on it, the relationships between its participants. Therefore, in order to carry out legal activities in the financial market, the Bank of Russia requires that specialists have a qualification certificate for working in the financial market (FFMS certificate).

Who should have a certificate

The Federal Service for Financial Markets of Russia developed and approved Order No. 10-4 / pz-n of 28.01.2010 Regulations on the specialists of the financial market.

It says that staff members of organizations that work in the financial market must pass mandatory certification, carrying out the following activities:

• Depositary;
• Broker and dealer;
• On management of securities;
• Organizer of work on the securities market;
• Clearing;
• On keeping the register of owners of securities;
• On management of non-state pension and unit investment funds;
• Specialized depository of non-state pension and unit investment funds.

In these organizations, the whole staff does not pass certification, but only the following employees:

• The head, the deputy head, heads and deputy heads of branches if to a circle of their duties the decision-making in the field of activity of the organization is carried;
• Chief and deputy head of the division, if the scope of their duties includes decision-making in this area, including the internal accounting of transactions with securities;
• Employee, whose duties include internal control over the activities of the organization in the financial market;
• Employee, whose duties include the direct implementation of the organization's work in the financial market.

How to get a certificate of the Federal Financial Markets Service of Russia, it is useful to know and students graduating from universities in financial specialties and intending to start working in leading companies upon graduation. In practice, 80% of employers want to see holders of such certificates among candidates for their jobs in the specialty for which the organization is oriented. Having a ready-made certificate gives the graduate the opportunity to find a high-paying and interesting job faster.

Who is allowed to take the exam?

In order for the candidate to start the examination for the FFMS certificate, it is necessary that he meets several conditions:

1. Was over 18 years old
2. If a candidate has previously had a certificate from the FSFM and that has been revoked, then from the date of cancellation must take more than three years.
3. The candidate must successfully pass the basic exam.

Who conducts the exam

Initially, issued a certificate and conducted examinations by the Federal Service for Financial Markets of Russia (FFMS of Russia), so it is called. Then the functions of issuing were transferred to certified training centers. They are accredited by the Bank of Russia to receive examinations of experts of the stock market and have the right to issue a certificate of the Federal Financial Markets Service. Basic and specialized examinations also hold these accredited training centers. Depending on the center, the cost of the exam, called otherwise the examination fee, ranges from 2000 to 4000 rubles.

When conducting a basic qualifying examination, candidates are tested for knowledge of legal acts related to the regulation of financial markets, the ability to make simple calculations using financial and economic analysis methods, economic statistics and mathematical economics.

During the specialized qualification examination, a test is conducted for an in-depth knowledge of the regulatory framework relevant to the specific specialization in the financial market.

What documents are required for the exam?

Before the basic exam, the training centers are assembled by groups for which entries are required to be submitted:

• A copy of the higher education document (if available);
• Contract and the questionnaire of the training center;
• A copy of the passport;
• Receipt of payment.

To pass a specialized examination, you must have:

• Documents confirming the successful completion of the basic exam;
• A copy of the higher education document;
• Contract and the questionnaire of the training center;
• A copy of the passport;
• Receipt of payment.

When can they refuse to pass the exam

The reason for not allowing a candidate to take an exam can be one of the following reasons:

• The candidate appeared for the exam without a document proving his identity;
• Incomplete set of required documents;
• The documents submitted contain inaccurate or false information;
• Since the passing of the basic exam more than five years have passed;
• The cancellation of the results of the previous examination, if three months have not passed since its date;
• Since the cancellation of the previous certificate of the candidate, three years have not passed;
• Previously, the candidate had an attempt to pass an examination on someone else's passport, and from that moment, one year has not passed.

How to pass the exam

The entrance to the test is made according to the passport. The rules for conducting the examination are not too exaggerated, you can use only a pencil, a pen and blank sheets of paper for writing, you can use an unprogrammed calculator.

During the examination it is strictly prohibited:

• To use the normative acts of Russia in any form;
• Use special and reference literature;
• Use mobile communication and other ways of transferring and storing information;
• Leave the room for testing before its completion;
• Communicate with someone on the topic of the exam;
• Record and transmit the content of test questions;
• To delay the delivery of test answers after the end of the exam time;
• Make test sheets from the test room.

Testing takes place in electronic form in a specially equipped audience. Tasks and test questions are formed based on the requirements of the Bank of Russia for qualifying examinations of a specialist in the stock market. The basic exam and examination for the certificate of the fifth series last two hours, the duration of the remaining one is one hour.

For the correct answer in the test system, one or two points are assigned depending on the complexity of the question. Successful passing of the test is considered when the subject scored more than 80 points out of a possible 100. If the candidate types from 75 to 79 points during testing, he can appeal his results within a month from the time of the examination. Appeal occurs in the form of an independent two-hour written work with the justification of the correctness of their answers. At the same time it is already allowed to use legal documents.

What types of certificates exist

In order to obtain a certificate of a certain type, you must first pass a basic qualification exam, sometimes called the exam series 0.0. After passing the certificate is not issued.

To conduct real work, specialized certificates of the FSFM are needed. Types of specialized certificates depend on the type of activity in the financial market:

• Certificate ФСФР 1.0 - training for dealer, brokerage and securities management activities.
• Certificate FFMS 2.0 - for clearing activities and work on the stock exchange.
• Certificate of the Federal Financial Markets Service (FFMS) 3.0 - for accounting of securities owners;
• The certificate of the Federal Financial Markets Service (FFMS) 4.0 is for depository activities.
• Certificate FFMS 5.0 - for the management of non-state pension, investment and mutual funds.
• The certificate of the Federal Financial Markets Service 6.0 is for the activities of the special depository of non-state pension, investment and mutual funds.
• The certificate of the Federal Financial Markets Service (FSFM) is 7.0 for the activities of non-state pension funds, professional and compulsory pension insurance.

For how long is the certificate issued

After successfully passing the exam within 15 days, the training center issues a qualification certificate of a specialist in the financial market to the competitor. The certificate is unlimited.

Who keeps the register of certificates

The register of issued and canceled certificates of financial market professionals is maintained by the Bank of Russia. This registry contains information:

• About a specialist who received a certificate;
• About a series and number of a serial number;
• On the area of the financial market for which a certificate is issued;
• Other necessary information.

When changing data that are contained in a single register, the holder of the certificate is required to notify the Bank of Russia. To do this, it is sufficient to send a written application to any territorial unit of the Bank of Russia, attaching to it copies of documents confirming the legality of the changes and a copy of the certificate.

Certificate cancellation

If the holder of the certificate violates Russian legislation in the sphere of securities and financial markets, the Bank of Russia may cancel its qualification certificate for a period of three years. After making a decision on cancellation within five working days, the Bank of Russia notifies the holder of the certificate, from which he was revoked, attaching a copy of the relevant order of the FSFM.

The list of canceled certificates is placed on the official website of the FFMS of Russia in a free access for all interested parties within ten working days from the date of the decision on cancellation. This decision can be challenged by the certificate owner only in court.

How to prepare for the exam

Recently, training centers offer candidates seeking to obtain a certificate of the Federal Financial Markets Service, training in preparatory courses. Convenience of visiting the preparatory courses is the possibility:

• Receiving recommendations from the teachers who take the exam;
• Passing pre-test testing, which allows to identify the candidate's weak spots and reduce anxiety and stress during the passage of this exam;
• The study of specialized manuals and methodological recommendations with examples of questions and tasks with answers to them.

In addition, the preparatory courses, which can be held remotely, have become very popular. This method is much cheaper than full-time education while maintaining its quality. So, the most demanded is the exam for the right to receive a certificate of the Federal Financial Markets Service 1.0. Materials for self-preparation for him are easy to find.