How long series 3

If an AP registers as a CTA only with the CFTC, that person is allowed to give general trading advice, put out newsletters, and make recommendations, but cannot handle clients' money.

This is known in the business as being an "educational" CTA. If you wish to manage client funds actively, then you must register with NFA as a CTA, pay additional fees , and adhere to a strict set of rules and regulations.

The NFA requires that CTAs who handle clients' funds disclose to potential clients the manager's successful accounts and the unsuccessful accounts. Another strict rule is that CTAs must maintain segregated accounts for each client that they manage money for.

This requires that each account has orders independently executed and trades must be allocated to each client's account in order to properly attribute gains and losses. In this way, the CTA is much like the commodities equivalent of a registered investment advisor for an individual's stock and bond portfolio. In exchange for all of this extra work, CTAs are able to collect a management fee and a performance fee.

As CTAs build their business, there is no limit to the amount of capital that they can have under management, if they are good managers. CPOs are able to collect the same management and performance fees as CTAs, but instead of having to track each client individually, they are able to aggregate all of the capital under one account and allocate returns according to the percentage that each investor owns. There are two types of CPOs: public and private.

For APs that have been in the business for years, this is simply one of many logical steps to increase their value in the eyes of their clients and to raise their status among their peers. Series 3 is just one way to access the world of commodities for your clients. Stockbrokers that want to narrow their work to helping CTAs and CPOs raise capital can take the Series 31 exam, which has only 45 questions. Once completed, stockbrokers can introduce their clients to the alternative world of futures and commodities investing while still fulfilling their fiduciary responsibility.

Those stockbrokers or commodities brokers that are licensed in the United Kingdom can enter the United States structure of futures by simply taking the Series Becoming a commodities or futures broker does not have to end with passing the Series 3. This is a career where the sky is the limit. A commodities broker can transition from making a small percentage of the commission charged for every transaction all the way to running their own money management firm, which could generate millions in income for themselves and their clients.

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Just open this page in Safari on your iPhone or iPad. Irregular heart rhythm notification 7. International emergency calling 8. Cellular available 9. To take the Series 3, an individual who is hired by an NFA-registered firm must file a Form 8-R application and attach a fingerprint card. You will have to answer a lengthy set of questions about your education and employment background and disciplinary history.

A Series 3 license qualifies individuals to solicit customers, customer orders or customer funds on behalf of a futures commission merchant, retail foreign exchange dealer, introducing broker, commodity trading advisor or commodity pool operator. It also qualifies individuals to manage other individuals who sell commodities or futures contracts. All individuals who solicit retail forex business or who supervise that activity must have taken and passed two exams—the National Commodity Futures Examination Series 3 and the Retail Off-Exchange Forex Examination Series 34 , which is an exam focusing exclusively on forex-related questions.

However, individuals who were registered as APs, sole proprietors or floor brokers on May 22, , do not need to take the Series 34 exam unless there has been a two year gap in their registration since that date. Training classes are available from entities that are not affiliated with NFA, and you can locate them by searching the Internet.

To sign up for any of the futures industry exams, the applicant must submit an online application and applicable fee to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority FINRA. The applicant must pay the exam fee by credit card or electronic ACH payment. To schedule your proficiency examination, contact Thompson-Prometric. There is no limit on the number of times you may take the Series 3 or any of the proficiency exams.