International institutions "grab" the ESG certificate market, and the examination fee is as high as 10,000 yuan

Reporter: Huang Zongyan Editor: Chen Junjie

In many fields, an authoritative professional credential often means better job search or promotion opportunities. The emerging ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) sector is creating a similar market demand.

According to a survey conducted by the Brand Value Research Institute, many well-known institutions at home and abroad are laying out the ESG certificate market. At present, international institutions such as the CFA Institute (CFA) and the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), as well as domestic institutions such as the Talent Exchange Service Center of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, have launched ESG certificate exams. In terms of fees, most of the ESG certificate exams launched by international institutions are more than 5,000 yuan, which is generally higher than the ESG certificate exams of domestic institutions.

So, how much value do these ESG certificates have, are they helpful for job hunting and promotion, should you choose international or domestic agency certificates, and what are the future prospects and trends of the market?

At the 6th CIIE, ESG-related content exhibited by international institutions Visual China Diagram

Market status: 40,000 candidates take relevant certificate exams

The financial director of a listed company, who did not want to be named, told reporters that in the past year, he often participated in some ESG business discussions, and he also felt that there were more and more people talking about ESG topics around him.

As a certified public accountant (CPA), he understands the importance of authoritative professional credentials. "ESG is an emerging field, and if you want to do a good job in related business, the more direct way is to take an authoritative ESG certificate and systematically learn Xi relevant professional knowledge. Many executives and ESG managers of listed companies have the same idea of referring to ESG certificates as he does.

As a part of the ESG ecological chain, ESG training is an indispensable part in theory, and ESG certificates are an important criterion for evaluating ESG talents. Therefore, many domestic and foreign institutions have smelled business opportunities and begun to lay out.

According to incomplete statistics from the Brand Value Research Institute, the ESG certificates from international institutions in the current market include: ESG Investing (ESG Investment Certificate) issued by the CFA Institute, FSA Certificate issued by the ISSB, CESGA (ESG Investment Certification Qualification Certificate) issued by EFFAS (European Financial Analysts Association), SRI (Sustainable and Responsible Investment Professional Assessment Certification Certificate) issued by CISI (Chartered Securities and Investment Institute), ESG analyst certificates issued by UESG, ESG certificates from domestic institutions include: CPBA (Business Analyst Certificate) jointly issued by the Market Research Branch of China Information Association and China Economic and Digital Research Institute, and "Certified ESG Analyst" jointly issued by the Talent Exchange Service Center of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce and the China Association for the Promotion of Science and Technology Finance.

Compared with other occupations or qualifications, the examination fee for ESG certificates is generally higher. The cost of ESG certificate examinations for international institutions is significantly higher than that of domestic institutions.

For example, the CFA Institute's ESG Investing certificate is $865 regardless of tier, the ISSB's FSA certificate is $450 for Level 1 and $650 for Level 2, the CESGA certificate for EFFAS is €1,500 for all levels, and the UESG certificate is $3,250 for ESG Fundamental Analyst, $5,350 for ESG Senior Analyst, and $6,550 for ESG Chartered Analyst. The examination fee for the CPBA certificate in China is 900 yuan, and the "Certified ESG Analyst" is divided into three levels, and the examination fee for each level is 3,980 yuan, of which the primary level is optional, and the intermediate and senior level are compulsory.

From the perspective of the size of the ESG certificate market, according to the data released by the CFA Institute a few days ago, the ESG Investing certificate was launched in September 2021, and as of early December this year, more than 40,000 candidates around the world have registered for the exam. However, the CFA Institute does not publish the number of domestic references.

Data provided by the ISSB to reporters shows that as of November 2023, more than 7,300 people around the world have registered for the FSA certificate exam, of which about 2,000 have passed the two levels of the exam; more than 100 people in Chinese mainland have registered for the exam and 14 have passed the two levels of the exam; about 140 people have registered for reference and 32 people have passed the exam in Hong Kong, China.

Zhang Zhengwei, Special Advisor to the President of the ISSB and Director of the Beijing Office, said, "Compared with the world, FSA certificates are still relatively scarce in China, and the market potential is very high."

Gold content doubts: What can an ESG certificate bring?

It is worth mentioning that the examination directions of major institutions are different, such as the ESG Investing certificate of the CFA Institute focuses on ESG investment, the FSA certificate of the ISSB focuses on ESG disclosure, and the CPBA certificate of domestic institutions focuses on ESG consulting, ESG strategy and management, etc.

Each has its own emphasis, which means that the direction of the certificate is more professional and vertical, and cannot have both the depth and breadth of the ESG profession.

With the rise of ESG, several new training and certification exams in ESG have been added, such as the ESG Investing certificate of the CFA Institute, the ESG analyst certificate of Youshi, and the registered ESG analyst of domestic institutions. Its founder, Liske, is also an ESG Investing charterholder. In his opinion, many foreign company trainees are more inclined to understand China's ESG system when consulting for certificates, so as to better conduct business in China.

Zhang Zhengwei said frankly that students and enterprises want to get high-quality, authoritative and cost-effective educational opportunities. However, from a global perspective, the fragmentation of sustainability information disclosure also exists in sustainability-related training.

"At present, many sustainability-related courses are aimed at professionals in a specific field, and there is no systematic training course. In addition, unlike other qualifications that have undergone decades of practice and academic research, such as CPA, ESG as a profession is still relatively young and needs to be perfected for a while. He said.

For most people, vocational certificates are more likely to be used for job hunting or promotion, as exams are time-consuming, labor-intensive, and costly. So, how much impact does an ESG certificate have on job hunting or promotion?

"Although we do certificate training, I have always maintained the attitude that a certificate is at most a certificate, it is just a confirmation of your knowledge system, nothing more. "In the field of ESG certificate training, I think it is necessary to build a road of integration of industry and education from certification training to project Xi practice, to counterpart employment guidance and targeted employment training." ”

Fu Lina, supervisor and chief social responsibility officer of Kaiying Network, also held a similar view, she told reporters that ESG values practical work experience more. "Having a certificate does not mean that you have the ability to work, but also a specific analysis of specific problems. ”

In this regard, Zhang Zhengwei believes that FSA certificate holders have the knowledge and skills related to sustainability information and financial performance, which can help them improve their competitiveness in the workplace. "First, by having a comprehensive grasp of the ESG ecosystem, the charterholder is able to effectively provide the most decision-making sustainability information and understand the underlying drivers, secondly, the holder is familiar with the ISSB standards, the disclosure requirements and the standard-setting process, and the different perspectives of companies and investors on the use of the standards, and finally, the holders are able to apply their professional knowledge to inform the company's strategy and investment decisions. ”

Zhang Yi, general manager of CFA Institute in China, also told reporters: "For CFA Institute, it is not just a simple action to issue a certificate. The essence of the certificate is to help students build competencies, become more competitive in the workplace, and connect the holder to the development of the industry. This is the embodiment of the value of ESG certificates, and this value can stand the test of time. ”

The battle for the right to speak: ESG certificates also need to be localized

Between the ESG credentials of international and local institutions, industry and outsiders who take the exam face a multiple-choice question. Many people believe that the certificates of internationally renowned institutions are more influential, because international institutions are the setters of the ESG standard system.

In this sense, the competition in the ESG certificate market is also a battle for the right to speak in the ESG standard system. From this perspective, international and local institutions with ESG certificates need to compete on the same stage.

"Internationally, such as Singapore or Europe, the United States and other regions, international institutional certificates similar to the CFA Institute are definitely more well-known. Lisker analyzed to reporters, but some international ESG standards are not consistent with domestic ones, and if the international system is used to measure Chinese enterprises, it cannot completely and objectively evaluate the relevant ESG performance of enterprises. Therefore, the localization of ESG certificates is very important, and it also needs to be in line with China's national conditions.

Shi Yichen, senior academic advisor of the International Institute of Green Finance of the Central University of Finance and Economics and chief economist of Zhongcai Green Index, also told the "Daily Economic News" reporter that there is indeed a localization problem in ESG certificates, and the ESG certificates of international institutions are weaker in taking into account China's policies, which will have a certain impact on the holders at the practical level.

However, Zhang Yi believes that the certificates of international institutions and the certificates of local institutions do not necessarily have to be divided into markets from a competitive perspective.

"From the perspective of the CFA Institute, the focus is not on other competitive products, but on what the industry needs and what practitioners need. Zhang Yi said, "When the CFA Institute conducts ESG exams, it will also integrate more Chinese practices into it and 'tell China's story well on a global platform'." ”

At the same time, as a test of the concept of sustainable development, institutions also need to make the certificate "sustainable", and the traditional form of paid certification - the one-shot transaction of issuing certificates may not be suitable for the development of the industry.

Zhang Yi pointed out that ESG certificates cannot be operated in a purely commercial model. "The significance of ESG certificates is to cultivate suitable talents and improve the overall level of the market. If it is purely commercial, it will soon be eliminated from the market. ”

National Business Daily