Free CISI Introduction to Securities & Investment mock exam
Sit the whole Introduction paper: 50 questions spread across all eleven syllabus elements, under a 60-minute clock. Free, no sign-up, with a weighted score, an element breakdown and a written explanation for every answer.
Sitting the International Introduction instead?What is on the CISI Introduction to Securities & Investment mock exam?
One full Introduction to Securities & Investment practice paper: 50 questions in 60 minutes, spread across all eleven syllabus elements in their real proportions. Score 35 out of 50 to meet the 70% practice threshold, then review every answer one at a time.
- Questions
- 50 original practice questions
- Time
- 60 minutes
- Practice threshold
- 70%, which is 35 of 50
- Access
- Free, with no account or card
How the paper is weighted
The Introduction paper is the broadest in the CISI catalogue and the most thinly spread. Eleven elements share 50 questions, so most elements are worth three to six marks and none of them is worth revising to death. This mock uses the same split.
| Element | Questions |
|---|---|
| 1. Introduction | 3 |
| 2. The Economic Environment | 3 |
| 3. Financial Assets and Markets | 5 |
| 4. Equities | 7 |
| 5. Bonds | 6 |
| 6. Derivatives | 4 |
| 7. Investment Funds | 6 |
| 8. Financial Services Regulation | 5 |
| 9. Taxation, Investment Wrappers & Trusts | 5 |
| 10. Other Financial Products | 3 |
| 11. Financial Advice | 3 |
| Total | 50 |
Equities is the largest element at seven questions, and Equities, Bonds, Investment Funds and Other Markets and Investments together decide 24 of the 50 marks. The tail matters more than it looks, though: Introduction, The Economic Environment, Other Financial Products and Financial Advice are three marks each, and skipping all four gives away 12 marks before you start.
For the cleanest rehearsal, set aside the full 60 minutes, avoid notes and answer every question. There is no negative marking on the real paper, so a guess is always better than a blank. The mock hides feedback until submission and warns you before handing in a paper with blanks.
Full practice paper
50 questions. 60 minutes. No sign-up.
Sit the paper in one go if you can. Answers and explanations stay hidden until you submit, so the score is a more useful rehearsal than an instant-feedback quiz.
The timer starts when you press the button. Reloading or leaving the page ends this sitting.
Sample Introduction to Securities & Investment questions, with answers
8 questions at the standard of the paper above, weighted towards the elements that carry the most marks. Pick an answer to see whether you were right and why. None of these appear in the timed mock, so working through them first costs you nothing when you sit it.
In fintech, the term for technology that helps firms meet regulatory obligations, such as automated transaction monitoring, is:
Not quite. The answer is C.
Regtech applies technology to compliance work such as transaction monitoring, client screening and regulatory reporting, cutting the cost and improving the consistency of that work. Open banking is the runner-up as another rules-driven technology development, but it concerns sharing customer account data with authorised third parties. Robo-advice automates investment recommendations and peer-to-peer lending matches lenders with borrowers.
Who is normally responsible for repairs and insurance under a typical UK commercial lease?
Not quite. The answer is C.
Commercial property in the UK is usually let on full repairing and insuring terms, so the occupying business carries those costs and the rent reaches the owner largely intact. In residential letting the position is reversed and the landlord repairs. A lender takes security over the building without taking on its upkeep, and a managing agent arranges work but bills it back under the lease.
Which of the following describes a security whose certificates all remain in existence but are deposited with a central depository, so that no paper moves on a transfer?
Not quite. The answer is B.
Immobilisation keeps the physical certificates in existence but locks them in a depository, so transfers are made by book entry and the paper never moves. Dematerialisation is the closest alternative and goes further, abolishing the certificate altogether. Bearer and registered describe how title is evidenced, not where the documents are kept.
Which of the following is a UK corporate bond secured on specific assets of the issuing company?
Not quite. The answer is C.
In UK usage a debenture is debt secured on identified assets of the company, so on a default the holders look to those assets first; the same word means unsecured debt in the United States, which is a trap worth remembering. A covered bond is the runner-up because it is also secured, but its security is a ring-fenced pool of mortgages held by a bank rather than a charge over one company's property. Loan stock is unsecured, and an asset-backed security is issued by a special purpose vehicle rather than by the trading company.
The principal function of a credit default swap is:
Not quite. The answer is B.
A credit default swap moves the risk of a borrower defaulting from the protection buyer to the protection seller, who takes that risk on in return for the premium income. Managing interest risk is the closest alternative but is what an interest rate swap does. Fixing the price of a commodity is achieved with a future or forward, and fixing an exchange rate with a currency contract.
Demand from investors for an investment trust's shares falls away while its portfolio is unchanged. What effect is that most likely to have on the discount?
Not quite. The answer is D.
The share price is set by supply and demand in the market while net asset value is set by the portfolio, so weaker demand pushes the price down without moving the assets and the gap between them grows. Narrowing is the runner-up and is what stronger demand, or a buyback by the board, would produce. A premium requires the price to overtake net asset value, which is the opposite of falling demand, and the discount cannot stay put while the price moves and the assets do not.
Which of the following is NOT subject to the individual Conduct Rules under the SM&CR?
Not quite. The answer is A.
The Conduct Rules reach almost everyone in an authorised firm, but ancillary staff whose role is unconnected with regulated activities, such as catering, cleaning and security, are excluded. Senior managers are subject to the individual rules and to an additional set of their own. Certified staff and back office employees are both within the standard rules despite never facing a client.
Which of the following is treated as taxable income?
Not quite. The answer is D.
The State Pension is taxable income, though it is paid without tax deducted, so any tax due is usually collected through the code on other income. Universal Credit is the runner-up because it is also a regular state payment, but it is expressly non-taxable. Personal Independence Payment is a tax-free disability benefit, and ISA interest is free of income tax by design.
Where the marks go on this paper
This exam is wide rather than deep, and that is what catches people out. Nothing on it is conceptually hard. All of it has to be precise: the difference between an ordinary share and a preference share, between a unit trust and an OEIC, between an ISA and a pension wrapper. Candidates who lean on general business knowledge tend to score well on the parts they already meet at work and badly everywhere else.
The second reliable leak is terminology that sounds interchangeable and is not. Nominal value against market value, coupon against yield, execution-only against advised. A question will offer four statements that differ by one word, and recognising the topic will not get you the mark.
The third is time. Fifty questions in sixty minutes is about seventy seconds each, which is comfortable if you know the material cold and impossible if you are reasoning each one out from first principles. That is the single best argument for sitting this under the clock rather than untimed.
How to use your result
Treat 70% as a practice threshold, not a readiness promise. A stronger signal is a run of timed scores above the threshold with no element repeatedly falling behind. Because the elements are small, a single weak element rarely fails you on its own; three weak elements will. Read the breakdown looking for a pattern of low scores across related topics rather than one bad number.
Use the answer review to understand each miss, then revisit the relevant part of the Introduction to Securities & Investment exam guide. To drill a single topic rather than sit a whole paper, start with the free Introduction practice questions.
Looking for official material? Introduction past papers: what actually exists explains what CISI actually publishes and how to combine it with question practice. For more full papers, see the paid plans, from £59.
Independent practice material: PasskeyPrep is not affiliated with, endorsed by or accredited by the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment. These questions were written independently against the syllabus. They are not copied from a live CISI exam or official past paper.
Frequently asked questions
Is this Introduction to Securities & Investment mock exam really free?
Yes. All 50 questions are free to sit, with no account, email address or card. Submit the paper and you get your score, a breakdown across the eleven elements and an explanation for every answer.
Does this mock match the real CISI Introduction exam format?
It uses 50 questions, a 60-minute timer, a 70% practice threshold and the published weightings across all eleven syllabus elements. The questions are original PasskeyPrep practice material, not the CISI examination platform or official exam questions.
Is the Introduction exam the same as the International Introduction?
No. CISI runs a UK Introduction to Securities & Investment, listed in the exam shop as the Level 3 Award Introduction to Investment, and a separate International Introduction, often shortened to IISI. There is also a Level 2 award, Fundamentals of Financial Services. This mock is built against the UK Introduction syllabus, so check which paper you are booked for.
What score should I aim for?
The exam pass mark is 70%, so this mock marks 35 out of 50 as meeting the practice threshold. One result cannot predict or guarantee an exam result. Look for consistent scores across timed attempts, and treat any element you keep scoring under half on as the next thing to revise.