Fitch Learning and HearstLab have taken a majority stake in an AI-training startup — an investment that’s set to transform the offerings of the Canadian Securities Institute (CSI).
Owner of the CSI since last year, and a global financial education provider, Fitch Learning announced this week that it’s partnering with Barcelona-based Founderz. Founderz provides corporate AI training and offers programs in collaboration with Microsoft.
Fitch Learning, part of Fitch Group, is owned by American multinational media company Hearst Corp. HearstLab, a venture fund that invests in women-led startups, made the investment in Founderz, which is co-led by tech entrepreneurs Anna Cejudo and Pau Garcia-Milà. The AI business school has more than 630,000 learners worldwide, a release said. The investment amount was not disclosed.
The partnership with Founderz will expand Fitch Learning’s ability to “provide relevant AI skills training and to respond quickly to the evolving needs of financial advisors across Canada,” said Fitch Learning CEO, Andreas Karaiskos, in an emailed statement.
The CSI’s Canadian Securities Course (CSC), in particular, will benefit from the partnership. The CSC, no longer the industry’s requisite securities licensing course after the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) launched an exam-based proficiency regime this year, is repositioning as a post-licensing course.
Karaiskos said the Founderz partnership will allow Fitch Learning to “accelerate the integration of advanced AI technology into a range of our learning solutions — including the new Canadian Securities Course, which will be personalized, adaptive and designed to deliver a more engaging learning experience that enhances role readiness.” In an interview in May, Karaiskos projected that the new CSC would launch by year’s end.
Fitch Learning, which provides syllabus development and exam administration for CIRO’s exam-based proficiency, also built CIRO’s mandatory conduct training. The CSI is a provider of CIRO-dealer-member post-approval training, as well as mutual fund proficiency, designation education and continuing education.
“Becoming the major shareholder in Founderz is a significant milestone for Fitch Learning and CSI, and it demonstrates our ongoing commitment to supporting the financial services industry,” Karaiskos said in his emailed statement.
Fitch Learning has Canadian offices in Toronto and Montreal. When Karaiskos was interviewed in May, he said Fitch Group has almost 300 employees in Canada (including CSI employees). On its website, Fitch Group currently lists dozens of job openings in Toronto, largely for analyst and analytics-related positions.
