India Faces CFP Shortage Amid Growing Demand - FPSB CEO

Ahmedabad, Apr 9 (PTI) There is a growing demand-supply gap in terms of personal financing as India has only 3,215 Certified Financial Planner (CFP) professionals, not enough to meet the growing demand being witnessed in the financial planning space in the country, FPSB CEO Dante De Gori said here on Wednesday.

Financial Planning Standards Board (FPSB) is the global standards-setting body for the financial planning profession and owner of the international "Certified Financial Planner" certification programme.

As per FPSB India, as of December 2024, India has recorded 17.7 per cent year-on-year growth in 2024 - one of the highest in the world, taking the number of CFP professionals in the country to 3,215 in 2024, from 2,731 in 2023.

"For India, 3,215 professionals is not enough for future demand. The growth opportunity and the need for more Certified Financial Planners is already there, and we don't have the supply," Gori told PTI.

Globally, a total 230,648 CFP professionals are practicing in 28 territories, assisting millions in developing comprehensive financial plans to navigate financial challenges and achieve their long-term financial goals, it said.

Moreover, a proliferation of unqualified and untrained financial planners are looking to fill in the gap caused by the shortage of trained financial professionals and this is an issue that concerns both regulators and professionals, Gori said.

Gori further noted that technology is influencing financial planning in a big way. It is already changing the way in which financial planners gather data and engage with clients.

Further, psychology in financial planning has emerged as a new knowledge domain. It would be embedded in the curriculum for future professionals, and rolled out all around the world, he said.

Recently, the FPSB India, a subsidiary of FPSB, partnered with Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA) to launch an Executive Programme in Financial Planning and Investment Advisory Services.

FPSB India CEO Krishan Mishra said that curriculum of most B-schools are mainly focused on corporate finance and not personal finance, and FPSB India collaborated with IIMA to create a new set of professionals needed for the market.

FPSB India also signed an MoU with the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) at GIFT IFSC, Gandhinagar "to elevate GIFT IFSC as a premier global finance hub and strengthen its talent pool of skilled professionals, it said.

Mishra said that the IFSC at GIFT City currently employs 28,500 people across 44 firms, and is inducting 15-20 new firms every month on an average, with all of them being financial services firms.