A new programme set up by the Singapore Exchange (SGX) will allow financial market professionals to learn valuable new skills.

The SGX Academy's Certified Securities Professionals Programme targets stockbrokers, remisiers and others in the sector who want to sharpen up in areas such as investment analytics and client servicing and management.

The first module will be running by Nov 17, with the full programme expected to be ready by January.

The SGX Academy, which announced the new initiative with the Institute of Banking and Finance Singapore (IBF) yesterday, said that while the focus is on the securities industry, other financial professionals such as fund managers, wealth managers and even financial advisers will be welcome.

Participants have to undertake 10 modules, with each ranging from three to 12 hours.

Module one, for instance, takes three hours and covers the ecosystem of the financial market and how its evolution impacts operations, among other things. Other modules cover technical analysis "to determine market trends to forecast price movements and market positions to take" and client servicing to teach skills related to cross- or up-selling.

The full programme costs from $2,455. Up to 90 per cent of this can be defrayed with funding from the IBF Standards Training Scheme. SkillsFuture credits can be used too.

Those who complete the programme will get the IBF Level 1 certification and be IBF Qualified.

Successful participants can be accredited within a year. They may also sign up on a modular basis.

SGX expects 150 to 200 people to be trained in the first year, and "aims to see a larger number as we increase the frequency". "The longer- term aim is to see more than half of the trading representative community attain accreditation," it added.

Mr Chew Sutat, SGX head of equities and fixed income, said in a statement: "The... landscape is fast evolving. Nevertheless, trading representatives that provide value-add to clients remain relevant, especially in times of market uncertainty."