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CFA Institute – GIPS Standards for Verifiers When Verifying Asset Owners Exposure Draft
Letter Summary:
The Canadian Investment Performance Council (CIPC) of CFA Societies Canada has submitted its response to CFA Institute’s Exposure Draft: GIPS® Standards for Verifiers When Verifying Asset Owners. The Exposure Draft proposes new standards specifically tailored for verifiers conducting GIPS compliance assessments for asset owners—such as pension funds, endowments, and sovereign wealth funds.
Overview of the Council’s Comments:
The Canadian Investment Performance Council (CIPC) has submitted its response to the CFA Institute’s Exposure Draft of the GIPS Standards for Verifiers When Verifying Asset Owners. Key points include:
- General Agreement: CIPC supports the proposed testing procedures but requests clarification on how verifiers should assess total asset owner assets.
- Opposition to Legal Knowledge Requirement: CIPC does not support requiring verifiers to be knowledgeable about jurisdiction-specific laws unrelated to performance. It argues this would be overly burdensome, increase verification costs, and fall outside the verifier’s intended scope.
- Terminology Support: CIPC agrees with replacing “total fund composite” with the clearer term “composite of total funds”.
- Request for Transparency: The council advocates for more clarity on how stakeholder feedback on exposure drafts is reviewed and incorporated.
The full response reflects CIPC’s ongoing commitment to clear, practical, and effective performance verification standards.