Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) (pronounced "KAI-ah") is a

professional designation Professional certification, trade certification, or professional designation, often called simply ''certification'' or ''qualification'', is a designation earned by a person to assure qualification to perform a job or task. Not all certifications ...

offered by the CAIA Association to investment professionals who complete a course of study and pass two examinations. The "

alternative investments An alternative investment, also known as an alternative asset or alternative investment fund (AIF), is an investment in any asset class excluding stocks, bonds, and cash. The term is a relatively loose one and includes tangible assets such a ...

" industry is characterized as dealing with asset classes and investments other than standard

equity Equity may refer to: Finance, accounting and ownership * Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them ** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business ** Home equity, the dif ...

fixed income Fixed income refers to any type of investment under which the borrower or issuer is obliged to make payments of a fixed amount on a fixed schedule. For example, the borrower may have to pay interest at a fixed rate once a year and repay the prin ...

products. Alternative investments can include

hedge fund A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that trades in relatively liquid assets and is able to make extensive use of more complex trading, portfolio-construction, and risk management techniques in an attempt to improve performance, such as sho ...

private equity In the field of finance, the term private equity (PE) refers to investment funds, usually limited partnerships (LP), which buy and restructure financially weak companies that produce goods and provide services. A private-equity fund is both a ty ...

real assets Real Assets is an investment asset class that covers investments in physical assets such as real estate, energy, and infrastructure. Real assets have an inherent physical worth. Real assets differ from financial assets in that financial assets get ...

commodities In economics, a commodity is an economic good, usually a resource, that has full or substantial fungibility: that is, the market treats instances of the good as equivalent or nearly so with no regard to who produced them. The price of a comm ...

, and structured products. The CAIA curriculum is designed to provide finance professionals with a broad base of knowledge in alternative investments. The Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association was founded in 2002 by the Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) and the Center for International Securities and Derivatives Markets (CISDM). The CAIA Association is an independent, not-for-profit, global organization committed to education and professionalism in the field of alternative investments. CAIA designees are required to maintain membership in the CAIA Association and adhere to professional and ethical standards. As of 2021, there are over 12,000 CAIA members. ''The Journal of Alternative Investments'' is the official publication of the CAIA Association. The JAI is one of nine journals published by Institutional Investor Journals.

Curriculum

The CAIA program is divided into two levels. The Level I curriculum focuses on the fundamentals of alternative investment markets, while Level II concentrates on advanced topics in alternative investments. Both levels take a global perspective and incorporate issues of ethics and professional conduct. Candidates can take exams from anywhere in the World.

Level I

The CAIA Level I exam consists of 200 multiple-choice questions. The Level I curriculum covers six topics, listed below. CAIA Level I candidates are assumed to have an elementary undergraduate understanding of the basic concepts of traditional finance and quantitative analysis. The Level I curriculum covers: * Professional Standards and Ethics **Standard 1: Professionalism **Standard 2: Integrity of Capital Markets **Standard 3: Duties to Clients **Standard 4: Duties to Employers **Standard 5: Investment Analysis, Recommendations, and Actions **Standard 6: Conflicts of Interest **Standard 7: Responsibilities as a CFA (CAIA) Institute Member or CFA (CAIA) Candidate * Introduction to Alternative Investments **What is an Alternative Investment? **The Environment of Alternative Investments **Quantitative Foundations **Statistical Foundations **Measures of Risk and Performance **Foundations of Financial Economics **Benchmarking and Performance Attribution **Alpha, Beta, and Hypothesis Testing **Regression, Multivariate, and Nonlinear Methods * Real Assets **Natural Resources and Land **Commodity Forward Pricing **Commodities: Application and Evidence **Operationally Intensive Real Assets **Liquid and Fixed-Income Real Estate **Real Estate Equity investments * Hedge Funds **Structure of the Hedge Fund Industry **Macro and Managed Futures Funds **Event-Driven Hedge Funds **Relative Value Hedge Funds **Equity Hedge Funds **Funds of Hedge Funds * Private Equity **Introduction to Private Equity **Equity Types of Private Equity **Debt Types of Private Equity * Structured Products **Introduction to Structuring **Credit Risk and Credit Derivatives **CDO Structuring of Credit Risk **Equity-Linked Structured Products The CAIA Association recommends that candidates devote 200 or more hours of study to prepare for the Level I exam.

Level II

The CAIA Level II exam consists of 100 multiple-choice questions, plus three sets of constructed-response (essay) questions. The Level II curriculum is broadly divided into two sections: alternative investments and Core and Integrated Topics. Candidates must apply the skills and knowledge from Level I to gain a deeper understanding of issues involved in each of the areas of alternative investments. The Core and Integrated Topics text is updated annually to reflect the latest industry and research developments. The Level II curriculum covers: * Topic 1 - Emerging Topics * Topic 2 - Ethics, Regulation and ESG * Topic 3 - Models * Topic 4 - Institutional Asset Owners and Investment Policies * Topic 5 - Risk and Risk Management * Topic 6 - Methods for Alternative Investing * Topic 7 - Accessing Alternative Investments * Topic 8 - Due Diligence and Selecting Strategies * Topic 9 - Volatility and Complex Strategies The CAIA Association recommends that candidates devote 200 or more hours of study to prepare for the Level II exam.

Historical pass rates

Grading begins once the examination window is closed, and Level I results are posted within three weeks after the final examination day. Level II exam results are available within six weeks after the last exam day, due to the need to grade essay questions. The percentage of candidates that pass the CAIA exams changes from exam to exam. As of Fall 2020, less than 34% of candidates are able to pass both CAIA Level I and Level II exams on consecutive first attempts. Candidates may augment their study of the CAIA curriculum materials with third-party preparation programs. Those programs are offered by: UpperMark, Kaplan Schweser, Top Finance, Kaplan Finance with Schweser—Hong Kong, Kaplan Finance, with Schweser—London, Hong Kong Securities and Investment Institute (HKSI), IEB (Instituto de Estudios Bursatiles), and NYSSA.

Chapters

Once the program and eligibility requirements have been met, CAIA Members are able to join Chapters. There are thirty CAIA Chapters around the world, including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Singapore, London, and Los Angeles. Chapter activities include educational panels with expert speakers and deliver on CAIA's mission to educate Candidates and Members about relevant issues in alternatives.

References

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External links

CAIA Association Official Website

AIMA Official Website

CISDM Official Website
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