The number of number of certified financial planners worldwide has reached a record level, according to the Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB), the international financial planning certifications manager.
At the end of last year, there were 181,360 certified financial planners globally, a 3.3% (5,787) increase from 2017.
The data comes from 26 territories and includes certified programmes and FPSB’s affiliate organisations.
“To establish financial planning as a recognized global profession, FPSB has set itself an ambitious goal to have 250,000 certified financial planner (CFP) professionals in 40 territories by 2025,” said Noel Maye, chief executive of FPSB.
“With a global CFP professional growth rate of 3.3% within FPSB’s 26-territory network, talks underway in several new territories and the rollout of FPSB pathway education and certification programs last year, FPSB is making solid progress in its efforts to increase the public’s access to competent and ethical financial planners who work in their clients’ interest.”
In the report, the US leads the way with 81,106 financial planners, followed by Japan (21,631), China (20,047) and Canada (16,419).
Source: FPSB
The UK currently has 915 certified financial planners, while countries like Turkey are preparing to offer CFP certification and widen the global network.
The greatest concentration of professionals was found in the US (57%) and Asia (35%), followed by Europe (4%), Africa (3%) and the Middle East (1%).
