Financial Analysts earn a starting salary of Ksh 150,000 to Ksh 250,000 per month. Those earning this salary are analysts who pursued Bachelor of Commerce (or any other business related course) plus CFA from Institute of Chartered Financial Analyst.CFA is one of the hardest professional courses to pursue, it takes more than 3 years for one to complete the 3 mandatory levels. According to statistics from the examining body, Level 1 has a pass rate of 41%,level 2 a pass rate of 45% and Level 3 a pass rate of 52%.If you are not a serious candidate ,you may not finish all the 3 levels or it will take more than 7 years to complete the 3 levels.
The total cost of pursuing the three levels is Ksh 250,000 to Ksh 350,000.In Kenya, Strathmore University is the best institution to enroll for the program.
With CFA Level 1, you will easily secure employment as a Financial Analyst in Kenya. Employers know that the course is hard to pass, which is why CFA Level 1 is valued. Some of the best companies to work for include:
- PWC
- Earnest & Young
- Safaricom
- Deloitte
- KPMG
- Kenya Re
- Insurance Regulatory Authority
- Centum Investment
- Britam
- CIC Insurance
- Stanbic Bank
- Standard Chartered Bank
- Retirement Benefits Authority
- NSSF
- Ministry of Finance
- Central Bank of Kenya
- Nairobi Securities Exchange
- Capital Markets Authority
- Kenya Revenue authority
While pursuing your studies in a Kenyan university, you can start by pursuing Certified Investment and Financial Analysts (CIFA).It will equip you with basic knowledge of Finance and Investment. Upon graduation, enroll for CFA.
In Kenya, the following are salaries for Financial Analysts:
Financial Analyst Trainee—Ksh 80,000 per month
Junior Financial Analyst—Ksh 150,000 to Ksh 300,000 per month
Senior Financial Analyst—Ksh 250,000 to Ksh 500,000 per month
Manager—Ksh Ksh 400,000 to Ksh 1.5 million per month
If you get a chance at PWC and rise to the management level, you will earn not less than Ksh 500,000 per month. It takes 5 to 15 years for one to rise to the managerial level.
To rise faster in the corporate ladder, you can pursue Executive MBA or Master of Science in Finance. Any of the two courses is marketable in Kenya.
Some Kenyans have always asked me between CFA and CPA which one is the most marketable. Well, you can’t compare CFA and CPA,CFA is far superior. In fact,CPA is flooded, anyone can sit for exam and pass.CFA is not for everyone.