What is CAIA? History, Growth and Number of CAIA Members

By John / Stephanie

CAIA stands for Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst. It is a professional designation granted by the CAIA Association to professionals in the alternative investment field. The CAIA program involves a 2-tier exam and professional experience requirement.

What is CAIA?

The CAIA Association was founded in 2002 by two organizations: Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) and the Center for International Securities and Derivatives Markets (CISDM).

CAIA Program Curriculum

The program covers alternative investment topics, including:

Hedge Funds
Commodities and Managed Futures
Private Equity
Real Assets
Asset Allocation
Risk Management
Due Diligence
Credit Derivatives
Structured Products
Professional Standards & Ethic

Number of CAIA Members

The number of CAIA members have been steadily increasing to more than 8,000 in 80+ countries. There are 10,000+ current enrollment in the CAIA program, mostly from the US (7,800+), UK (1700+) and Canada (970+).

Composition of CAIA members

Almost half of the members come from the US and Canada, with 35% from Europe (notably the UK). Asia is growing rapidly in financial hubs such as Hong Kong and Singapore, and strong growth can be seen in China and Korea.

In terms of profession, it is quite diversified. The most common professionals with CAIA membership are portfolio managers, consultants, and analysts. Interestingly, sales and marketing professionals represent 14%. I don’t have the details, but they could be fund house sales mangers and private bankers.