Job profile
Pricing
Similar job titles
Pricing administrator
Valuations administrator
What
Pricing the individual securities that make up investment funds or portfolios is an essential daily
administrative task. Prices are needed to provide managers and clients with valuations of their
investments. Fund accountants and fund reporters also rely on this information. Working in
investment operations, you’ll support the valuations team, who compile the overall price valuation,
gathering the latest pricings of individual fund/portfolio components. This role requires strong oral and
written communication ability and good numeracy skills.
Salary
Entry level positions start at approximately £16,000 per annum. With the right experience,
qualifications and skills you could progress to management roles and earn in excess of £50,000 per
annum. This does not include potential bonuses and additional benefits. Salaries will vary
considerably based on location and employer.
Tasks
 Daily gathering and analysing of all relevant information relating to the value of assets and
investments
 Maintaining journals of pricing actions, utilising internal pricing systems and updating databases
 Ensuring all price calculations are correct, and informing all relevant people
 Investigating and resolving anomalies and discrepancies promptly
 Preparing reports stating purchase and sales prices for investments/units clearly and accurately
 Preparing reports on pricing trends and patterns for investment analysts
 Compliance with legal requirements, industry regulations, organisational policies and professional
codes
Skills
 Ability to comply with set internal policies and procedures
 Strong numerical and analytical skills
 Team work
 Attention to detail/accuracy
 Good planning and organisational skills
 Clear, concise communicators
 Ethical
 Confident using IT and financial reporting documents
Useful knowledge and experience
A new entrant will not always be required to have this knowledge. Employers usually provide training
to acquire skills for:
 Information sources on which prices are based such as Bloomberg, Reuters
 Knowledge of IT systems used for pricing and data storage
 How individual security pricing and portfolio/fund valuations link together
 Awareness of Financial Services Authority regulation relating to pricing and valuations
Entry qualifications
Working in pricing requires people who are good team workers, hard working, enthusiastic with
excellent communication skills. Due to the numerical and reporting aspects of this job, English and
maths qualifications are desirable. There are various levels of entry into the role. Any previous
qualifications or experience in investment administration or other fund operational jobs like clearing,
settlements, investment reconciliation and administration is helpful.
In order to gain an entry level position, employers will look for people who have:
 A Levels, Scottish Highers or equivalent qualifications such as Business, Administration and
Finance (BAF) Diploma, BTEC National Diploma, Welsh Baccalaureate (BAC), SVQ Level 3
or Higher National Certificate (SCQF Level 7)
Apprenticeships can be a useful way to gain entry and to progress on in the profession:

Level 2 Apprenticeship in Providing Financial Services, Investment Operations pathway
(England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland)

Level 3 Apprenticeship in Providing Financial Services, Investment Operations pathway
(England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland)
Professional and higher qualifications
Many employers recommend and support their pricing teams in gaining a professional qualification.
Most relevant to this role is are:
 Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI) Level 3 Investment Operations Certificate
(IOC)
 ICMA Centre / University of Reading Operations Certificate Programme
With several years’ experience, you may progress towards more advanced professional qualifications.
Most relevant are:
 CISI Advanced Certificate Programme in Operational Risk, and Global Securities Operations
 CISI specialist Diploma in Investment Operations
Additionally, as this role includes some accounting tasks, employers may expect you to acquire a
relevant accountancy qualification from one of these professional bodies:
 Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT)
 Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
 ICAEW (Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales)
 Association of Chartered Accountants in Scotland (ICAS)
UK and global opportunities
Opportunities exist with private and investment banks and investment and fund management
companies. Positions can often be found in major UK financial centres, such as London, Manchester,
Cardiff and Edinburgh. Scotland is a growing operational centre for investment administrative
functions.
Find out more
Association of Accounting Technicians – www.aat.co.uk
Association of Chartered Certified Accountants – www.acca.co.uk
Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment – www.cisi.org
Directions – www.directions.org.uk
ICMA Centre/ University of Reading – www.icmacentre.ac.uk
ICAEW (Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales) – www.icaew.com/career
Investment Management Association – www.investmentuk.org
Scottish Investment Operations – www.sio.org.uk
Scottish Qualifications Authority – www.sqa.org.uk
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