Becoming a finance analyst

Every organisation has people who keep track of its money. Finance analysts study those numbers and explain what they show. In the UK, people come into the work through a degree, an apprenticeship or a graduate training scheme.

Choose the kind of analyst you want to be

Some analysts work inside one company. They monitor spending and budgets, analyse how the business is performing and forecast its future spending.

Other analysts study companies from the outside. Investment analysts help stock market traders, stockbrokers and fund managers make decisions about investments. They research how companies are performing and write reports for fund managers and stockbrokers.

Build the core skills

Employers look for maths and a working knowledge of economics and accounting. They also want analytical thinking and sound judgement.

ACCA expects candidates in its management accounting exam to calculate the key accounting ratios and explain what they mean. It sorts the common ratios into four groups, which are profitability, liquidity, activity (efficiency) and gearing. A handful come up again and again.

Gross margin is gross profit divided by revenue, shown as a percentage.
Operating profit margin is profit before interest and tax divided by revenue.
Return on capital employed is profit before interest and tax divided by capital employed.
Asset turnover is revenue divided by capital employed.
The current ratio compares what falls due within the year with cash and the assets that should turn into cash in that time.

Take a business with an operating profit margin of 5% and an asset turnover of 2. Its return on capital employed is 10%, because 5% times 2 makes 10%.

ACCA uses it to explain a change in return on capital employed. Any change comes from the margin, from asset turnover, or from both.

Find your way in

For investment analyst roles, employers usually ask for a degree at upper second class or higher. Economics, maths, business studies, accountancy and finance are useful subjects. A placement year or a summer internship gives you experience to point to when you apply.

Apprentices combine paid work with study, and spend at least 20% of their normal working hours on training. Investment analysts can start on an Investment Operations Specialist Level 4 apprenticeship. Future management accountants can start on a Professional Accountancy or Taxation Technician Level 4 apprenticeship.

Pick a professional qualification

CFA Institute runs the CFA Program for people working in investment. Candidates pass three exams, one for each level. CFA Institute expects the three levels to take three to four years. Charterholders also need at least 4,000 hours of relevant work experience, completed in no fewer than 36 months.

For work inside a business, the National Careers Service points to training as a management accountant. It names three bodies for management accountants, which are the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), ACCA and the Institute of Financial Accountants. ACCA members qualify through exams, ethics study and three years' professional experience. ACCA has announced changes to its qualification from 2027.

Practise on real accounts

Anyone can look up a UK company on the Companies House register for free. The register shows company details, current and past officers, and images of the documents a company has filed, including its accounts.

What the work pays

In October 2026 the National Careers Service gave average salaries for both kinds of role. It listed £28,000 for a starting investment analyst and £75,000 for an experienced one. For management accountants it listed £30,000 at the start and £60,000 with experience.

Rules for investment work

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) expects people to hold an appropriate qualification for some work with retail clients, such as giving personal recommendations on investments or managing investments. The FCA lists that work in its handbook. The National Careers Service says graduate trainees at an investment bank or stockbroking firm must pass an exam that the FCA recognises. It names two, the Investment Management Certificate from CFA UK and the Investment Advice Diploma from the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment.

The FCA keeps the Financial Services Register, a public record of firms and people that are, or have been, authorised by the FCA or the Prudential Regulation Authority. It also lists firms the FCA has been told are working without authorisation or running scams.