CCM Equity Securities study guide
CCM Equity Securities · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
Equity Securities is a unit of the CISI's Capital Markets Programme, delivered by the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment, a UK professional body headquartered in London. It tests whether a candidate understands how equity markets work end to end: the instruments themselves, how shares are issued, how trades are cleared and settled, how equities are valued, and the rules that govern conduct. The CCM Equity Securities study guide has 5 sections and about 1,846 words.
01Equity Markets, Instruments and Market Participants
Questions here test whether you can classify an equity instrument by its cash-flow and voting rights, identify the venue where it trades, and match each activity in the chain from issuer to investor with the correct participant. Expect ranking questions (who is paid first), true/false statements about market structure, and questions that ask who bears principal risk.
382 words, about 2 min02Primary Markets, Issuance and Corporate Actions
This domain covers how new equity reaches investors and how issuers subsequently change the share capital or distribute value. You should be able to choose the right issuance method for a scenario, compute a theoretical ex-rights price, and place the dividend timetable dates in the correct order.
384 words, about 2 min03Trading, Clearing, Settlement and Post-Trade Processing
The exam checks that you understand the full trade lifecycle: how an order becomes an executed trade, how a CCP interposes itself, and how securities and cash finally exchange. Expect questions on order types, settlement-date arithmetic, dividend entitlement around the ex-date, and the consequences of a failed settlement.
349 words, about 2 min04Equity Valuation, Analysis and Investment Ratios
This domain tests your ability to compute and interpret the standard equity ratios, choose the right multiple for a comparison, and explain the assumptions behind a discounted cash flow or dividend discount model. Numerical questions are common, so be precise about numerator and denominator.
375 words, about 2 min05Regulation, Compliance and Ethical Conduct
This domain tests whether you can recognise market abuse, handle inside information correctly, and resolve conflicts of interest in the way a compliance officer would expect. Scenario questions dominate: you are given a situation and asked what you should do next, not merely what rule applies.
356 words, about 2 min