CISI Technology in Investment Management — Information & Free Practice

About CISI Technology in Investment Management

CISI Technology in Investment Management · GB

Key exam facts

Provider

Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI), examination owner and awarding body.

Format

Computer-based multiple-choice examination, available on demand at test centres or by remote invigilation.

Exam questions

Total questions: 50–55; Scored questions: 50; Unscored questions: 0–5; The total includes the scored and unscored questions.

Time limit

60 minutes for the standard 50 questions; proportionately more time is provided for additional trial questions.

Passing score

70% (35 of 50 marks). Pass: 35–45; pass with merit: 46–50; fail: 0–34.

Exam fee

UK exam fee GBP 155, applicable 1 April 2026–31 March 2027. Mandatory workbook GBP 105 separately; a one-off GBP 68 qualification registration fee applies when registering a first qualification. Saver package GBP 275 includes exam, workbook and Revision Express; concessionary rates may apply.

Topics covered

• Technology in Investment Management (8%)

  • know the role of the following participants within the financial services Sector retail banks and building societies investment banks asset owners fund managers wealth managers platforms financial advisers robo advisors custodians third party administrators (TPAs)
  • know the elements of a secondary market equity trade
  • know the elements of a secondary market bond trade
  • understand the importance of automation
  • understand the criticality of data management: accuracy timeliness security

• The Regulatory Framework (12%)

  • understand the regulatory framework
  • know the function of UK and European regulators in the financial services sector Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II)
  • know the significance of European Data Protection Regulation (GDPR and similar data protection regimes in other jurisdictions): principles non-compliance
  • understand how firms are using technology to comply with regulation
  • know the major technology implications of the following rules: FCA specific regulation including Client Asset Sourcebook (CASS), Conduct of Business Sourcebook (COB), Senior Management Arrangements, Systems and Controls (SYSC) Senior Managers & Certification Regime (SM&CR) Approved Person’s Regime (APER) Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II) Basel II & III Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Dodd Frank European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) Central Securities Depositories Regulation (CSDR) Know Your Customer (KYC)

• Technology and the Functional Flow of Financial Instruments (6%)

  • understand the function and connectivity of investment exchanges, multilateral trading facilities, organised trading facilities, systematic internalisers and fund platforms: classification economic functions order handling systems connectivity
  • understand the function and connectivity of central counterparty services:
  • know the function and connectivity of Trade Repositories
  • understand the functionality of external real time information sources pre-trade price and liquidity discovery analytics post-trade information dissemination transaction reporting / publication

• The Role of Technology in Trade Capture (8%)

  • understand the investment decision support process
  • understand the implications of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investing
  • understand the technology support requirements of order placing and filling including: order entry (agency, principal and 3rd party orders) pre-trade compliance, including mandates best execution Treating Customers Fairly transaction capture client connectivity including Direct Market Access communication via electronic media pooling, allocation and aggregation of a single order across two or more investors/funds dealing systems charges, fees and expenses
  • understand the purpose and consequences of algorithmic trading
  • understand the features of investor self-servicing
  • understand the basic technology characteristics of risk mitigation for the following trade capture functions: risk management transaction capture best execution

• The Role of Technology in the Pre-Settlement Phase (10%)

  • understand the technology alignment to pre-settlement phase key risk indicators including: reference data standing settlement instructions client and counterparty agreements
  • understand the technology implications of the trade agreement process
  • understand the role of matching engines
  • understand the technology requirements for reporting to regulators: wholesale v retail
  • understand the technology requirements for reporting to customers: wholesale v retail

• The Role of Technology in the Settlement and Post-Settlement Phases (10%)

  • understand the technology requirements for transaction settlement instructions
  • understand the purposes of stock lending and repos, their technology implications and the importance of asset segregation
  • understand the technology requirements for cash funding (positioning)
  • understand the function of technology within the settlement process: trade capture systems operations systems financial control systems
  • know the function of the following standards: SWIFT FIX FpML XBRL
  • understand the function of technology within reconciliation procedures including: reconciliation requirements and record keeping ensuring cash and stock movements are recorded journal movements corporate actions (including dividends, bonus issues and rights issues)
  • understand the technology implications of post-trade compliance

• The Impact of Technology on Financial Control (10%)

  • know the role of the financial control function
  • understand the relationship between trade capture, settlement operations and the financial control function
  • know the purpose of the general ledger
  • know the components of a general ledger account
  • know how account selection parameters are maintained
  • know the purpose of the stock record

• Technology Management (16%)

  • know the typical roles and responsibilities within the technology department
  • Know the importance of ensuring technology strategy matches the corporate strategy
  • know the typical building blocks of a technology infrastructure
  • understand the roles and uses of relational databases, distributed systems and real-time messaging
  • understand the technology governance relating to: measuring technology performance managing change benefits realisation
  • understand the importance of cyber security
  • understand the concept of management and support of applications
  • understand the function of service (help) desks and follow-the-sun model
  • know the purpose of service level agreements (SLAs) and key performance indicators (internal and external)
  • understand prioritisation levels and the responsibilities of support teams
  • understand the technology implications of disaster recovery (DR) and business continuity planning (BCP): planning risk assessment priorities for processing and operations recovery strategies data collection written plan testing criteria and procedures
  • understand the technology implications of operational resilience
  • understand the importance of change control procedures
  • understand the nature and management of technology risk
  • understand the challenges of separate systems

• Managing Business Change (12%)

  • understand the purpose and benefits of project planning and control
  • understand the importance of project governance
  • understand the key stages of a software development life cycle (SDLC) including: project planning feasibility study systems analysis requirements definition systems design code generation development integration and testing acceptance, installation, deployment maintenance
  • understand the different software development methodologies including: waterfall methodologies Iterative / incremental methodologies other methodologies
  • know the following different methodologies used in technology delivery: PRINCE II PMI ISO
  • understand the need for testing and its importance to quality assurance including: testing strategies test stages techniques cycles test reporting
  • know the impact of disruptive innovation and FinTech initiatives: cloud computing big data cryptocurrencies blockchain / distributed ledger technology artificial intelligence machine learning open finance

• Technology Services Procurement (8%)

  • understand the buy v build decision and implications and varieties of open source software
  • know the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing
  • know the advantages and disadvantages of insourcing
  • know the advantages and disadvantages of offshoring, near- shoring, best-shoring
  • understand the vendor relationship including: the vendor selection process vendor assessment task order / work order / contract negotiation and finalisation effective vendor management and oversight exit planning
  • understand the technology implications and risks for outsourced and vendor arrangements

How to prepare

Work through the topics, read the explanation after each answer, and revisit the areas where you miss questions. Use the official outline and reference materials below to guide your study.

These independent practice questions are not actual exam items and do not guarantee a passing result.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources and references

• CISI Current syllabus: Technology in Investment Management

  Printed page 1, Objective of the examination

• CISI Current syllabus: Technology in Investment Management

  Printed page 2, Examination Specification

• CISI Current syllabus: Technology in Investment Management

  Cover, effective statement

• CISI Technology in Investment Management

  Exam Details

• CISI Current syllabus: Technology in Investment Management

  Printed page 3, Assessment Structure

• CISI Technology in Investment Management

  Pass Mark / Pass Rate

• CISI Price list 2026–2027

  UK exam prices, Qualifying Level 3 units, Technology in Investment Management row

• CISI Technology in Investment Management, Edition 13

  Cover

• CISI Technology in Investment Management, Edition 13

  Cover, final examination date in applicability statement

Confirm current exam arrangements with the exam provider.