Manchester-based Smart Financial, Salisbury-based Grovely Financial Limited and London-based Chancery Lane Income Planners have gained Chartered Firm status from the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI).
The status is awarded by the CISI which also runs the Certified Financial Planner designation in the UK and has 57,000 members in 100 countries around the world.
To achieve CISI Chartered Firm status firms must demonstrate commitment to high standards of professionalism.
They have to meet a number of measures, including having a professional development programme that aligns with the CISI continuing professional development (CPD) requirements.
Ellie Price, Chartered Planner and director at Grovely Financial, said: “This designation is much more than a corporate accolade; it is an independent validation of the core values we live by every single day at Grovely Financial Limited.
“To us, true Financial Planning is about building deep, lasting relationships based on meaningful jargon-free conversations with our clients.”
Steve Martin Chartered Financial Planner and chief executive of Smart Financial said: “Smart Financial is proud to have been awarded CISI Chartered Firm status, building on its many years as an Accredited Financial Planning Firm. Chartered status provides clear, public recognition of the standards we uphold.”
Doug Brodie Chartered Financial Planner and CEO of Chancery Lane Income Planners said: "Achieving CISI Chartered Firm status reflects the high standards we set ourselves every day in our work with clients, and our continual commitment to investing in our team’s development, knowledge and expertise."
The CISI, which awards the Certified Financial Planner qualification in the UK among other qualifications, is based in the City of London and has offices in financial centres such as Colombo, Dubai, Sydney, Dublin, Glasgow, London, Mumbai and Nairobi. It has 57,000 members in over 100 countries.
According to our recent Financial Planning Today reader survey, 25% of readers are currently members of the CISI in comparison to 58% who are members of the CII’s Personal Finance Society.
Among other professional bodies our readers were members of were: LIBF (17%), SOLLA (8%), STEP (6%), the CFA (5%) and PIMFA (2%).