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Activity papers · Last updated October 2026

HKSI LE Paper 19: Depositary Services for Collective Investment Schemes: free practice test

This paper is for representatives and Responsible Officers seeking Type 13 registration (depositary services for SFC-authorised collective investment schemes), normally taken together with Papers 1 and 7. It covers the Hong Kong asset management industry, the major asset classes and fund types, and the depositary's custody, oversight and risk management functions.

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About the Paper 19 exam

This paper is for representatives and Responsible Officers seeking Type 13 registration (depositary services for SFC-authorised collective investment schemes), normally taken together with Papers 1 and 7. It covers the Hong Kong asset management industry, the major asset classes and fund types, and the depositary's custody, oversight and risk management functions.

What's on the exam

Paper 19
Asset Management Industry Overview
5 key facts
Asset Classes and Fund Types
6 key facts
Depositaries of SFC-Authorised CIS
6 key facts

Each branch is a topic in the official outline. Members see every key fact on the full mind map. Read the free study guide →

How to pass the Paper 19 exam

  • 40 questions in 60 minutes: that is 90 seconds per question.
  • 70% means 28 correct out of 40, so you can only afford 12 wrong.
  • The depositary oversees but never manages: any option where the depositary picks investments, sets the fund's objective or guarantees returns is wrong.
  • Most of the paper is Topic 3: know the oversight duties cold, especially cash reconciliation, fair valuation, pricing errors and post-trade verification of investment limits.

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Create a free account after the test: your score by topic, a mistakes bank, the complete study notes for the first topic, flashcards and the HKSI Key Numbers Sheet.

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What's in the premium Paper 19 prep

Premium Paper 19 prep is studied one topic at a time. Each step starts with that topic's key notes and flashcard deck, then its own question sets of 25, so you master one topic before you move to the next. When every topic is strong, the 6 full mock exams show you're ready.

3,000practice questions, every answer explained
6full-length mock exams, 50 questions each, timed
800flashcards with spaced repetition, sorted by topic
60comprehensive key notes across 3 topics

Your step-by-step study path

  1. 1
    Asset Management Industry Overview20 key notes, 270 flashcards, then 1,000 practice questions in 40 sets of 25
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  2. 2
    Asset Classes and Fund Types20 key notes, 265 flashcards, then 1,000 practice questions in 40 sets of 25
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  3. 3
    Depositaries of SFC-Authorised CIS20 key notes, 265 flashcards, then 1,000 practice questions in 40 sets of 25
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  4. Final step: 6 full mock exams50 questions each, timed like test day. Pass them, then book your exam.
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Read the complete Paper 19 study notes for “Asset Management Industry Overview”

Our first full set of comprehensive notes, about 10 minutes of reading: What is a collective investment scheme? · Types of managed funds · Benefits and costs of managed funds · The Hong Kong fund management industry · Participants in the fund industry · Who needs this paper, a worked exam example, the traps examiners use and a one-minute recap. Create a free account to read it and see how premium notes work before you decide.

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Study tools included

3,000 practice questions

3,000 exam-style questions per exam, organized topic by topic in sets of 25. Every answer explained, with the rule it comes from.

6 full mock exams

6 full-length timed mock exams per exam, with real question counts and time limits, so test day feels like practice day.

Exam Readiness Score

One 0 to 100 number that tells you when you're ready to book. Reach 80 and you're covered by our Pass Guarantee.

800 flashcards + spaced repetition

800 flashcards per exam, in a deck for each topic, that come back right before you'd forget them. Five minutes a day keeps every number fresh.

60 comprehensive key notes

60 key notes per exam, split across its topics and each explained in full: the concepts, worked exam examples, the traps examiners use and a quick recap. Your first set is free with an account.

Mind maps

See the whole exam on one screen: every topic and the facts under it.

Sample questions with answers

These are the questions in the free test above, with answers. Try the test first. You'll learn more by getting some wrong.

1. Under the Securities and Futures Ordinance (SFO), an arrangement qualifies as a collective investment scheme if it involves:
Answer: Pooling of investor contributions, no day-to-day control by participants, and collective sharing of profits or income. The SFO (Schedule 1) defines a CIS by three features: contributions are pooled, participants do not have day-to-day control over management, and returns are shared collectively. Offers of a CIS to the Hong Kong public generally require SFC authorization under section 104 unless an exemption applies.
2. In Hong Kong, providing depositary services for SFC-authorised collective investment schemes is:
Answer: A regulated activity (Type 13) under the SFO. Depositary services for SFC-authorised CIS is Type 13 regulated activity under the SFO. Representatives and Responsible Officers performing it must be licensed, which is why Paper 19 is taken with Papers 1 and 7.
3. In a Hong Kong SFC-authorised unit trust, the trustee's fundamental duty is to:
Answer: Hold the scheme property on trust for the benefit of unitholders. The trustee holds legal title to the scheme property on trust for unitholders and safeguards their interests. Investment decisions sit with the management company and distribution with licensed intermediaries.
4. Which of the following is a cost, rather than a benefit, of investing in a managed fund?
Answer: A management fee charged as a percentage of net asset value. Diversification, professional management and low minimum investment are benefits of pooling. Management fees, subscription and redemption charges and performance fees are costs that reduce the investor's return.
5. Which statement about an open-ended fund is correct?
Answer: Its units are issued and cancelled in response to investor subscriptions and redemptions. Open-ended funds create units on subscription and cancel them on redemption, generally dealing at NAV-based prices. Closed-ended funds have fixed capital, are exchange-listed, and trade at market-determined premiums or discounts.
6. A money market fund primarily invests in:
Answer: Short-term, high-quality debt instruments such as treasury bills and commercial paper. Money market funds hold short-dated, high-credit-quality instruments and aim for capital preservation and liquidity with modest returns, unlike bond, equity or property funds.
7. A passive fund manager's objective is to:
Answer: Track a benchmark index as closely as possible. Passive management, used by index funds and most ETFs, seeks to replicate an index and minimize tracking error. Active management seeks to beat the benchmark through security selection and market timing.
8. Under the SFC's Code on Real Estate Investment Trusts, a Hong Kong REIT must distribute not less than:
Answer: 90% of its net income after tax. The REIT Code requires a Hong Kong REIT to distribute not less than 90% of its net income after tax, which is why REITs appeal to income-focused investors.
9. Which of the following is a core function of the depositary of an SFC-authorised CIS?
Answer: Safekeeping of scheme assets and oversight of the manager's compliance with the scheme documents. Type 13 depositary services combine custody (registration, safekeeping, settlement, cash monitoring) with oversight of CIS operations such as valuation, investment limits and distributions. Portfolio decisions remain with the fund manager.
10. A depositary delegates safekeeping of some scheme assets to a sub-custodian. If the sub-custodian's negligence causes a loss, under the depositary's oversight obligations:
Answer: The depositary remains responsible, as it must select delegates with due diligence and monitor them. A depositary may appoint delegates but cannot delegate away its responsibilities. It must conduct due diligence before appointment and ongoing monitoring, and it remains answerable for the delegate's performance.
11. The depositary's daily cash reconciliation for a CIS is designed to:
Answer: Verify that cash movements match subscriptions, redemptions and other dealings, so discrepancies surface quickly. The depositary maintains the CIS's bank accounts and monitors cash flows, reconciling cash balances daily against expected movements. Discrepancies must be investigated and escalated promptly.
12. A stock held by the fund is suspended from trading, so the last traded price is unreliable. The depositary should:
Answer: Expect the manager to apply fair valuation, and review and challenge the method used. When a market price is unavailable or unreliable, the manager must apply fair valuation methods consistent with the scheme documents and SFC requirements. The depositary's role is to review, verify and challenge the valuation.
13. The depositary discovers that a fund's dealing price was materially wrong because of a pricing error, and some investors traded at that price. The depositary should:
Answer: Notify the manager, quantify the impact and ensure affected investors are compensated. Material pricing errors must be escalated: the depositary should ensure the error is corrected, affected investors are compensated and, where required, the matter is reported to the SFC. Ignoring or concealing errors breaches the depositary's oversight duty.
14. How does a depositary monitor a fund's compliance with the investment and borrowing restrictions in its scheme documents?
Answer: By conducting post-trade verification that holdings and borrowings are within the stated limits. The depositary performs post-trade verification, checking regularly that the portfolio and borrowings comply with the limits in the offering documents, and escalating and following up any breach until it is remedied.
15. To mitigate insolvency risk where scheme assets are held with a custodian bank, a depositary should:
Answer: Ensure assets are held in segregated accounts and monitor the financial soundness of the custodian, with contingency plans to move assets. Segregation keeps scheme assets out of the custodian's estate if it fails. The depositary should also monitor the financial condition of delegates, banks and central securities depositories and maintain contingency arrangements.

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Paper 19 exam FAQ

How many questions are on the Paper 19 exam?

40 multiple-choice questions, with a time limit of 60 minutes. Format: closed book, computer-based.

What is the passing score for Paper 19?

70%.

How much does the Paper 19 exam cost?

HK$2,000 in Hong Kong (HK$2,450 at overseas Prometric centres). Fees change, so confirm with the HKSI Institute before you enrol.

Which languages is the Paper 19 exam offered in?

English or Traditional Chinese.

Where do I take the Paper 19 exam?

HKSI Institute computer-based test centre in Hong Kong, or Prometric centres outside Hong Kong.

Is this Paper 19 practice test free?

Yes. The 15-question practice test on this page is free, with an explanation for every answer and no signup. A free account also unlocks the complete study notes for the first topic. The full Paper 19 prep is Premium at HK$1,147 a month for this exam.

What's in the premium Paper 19 prep?

3,000 practice questions organized topic by topic (Asset Management Industry Overview: 1000; Asset Classes and Fund Types: 1000; Depositaries of SFC-Authorised CIS: 1000), 6 full-length timed mock exams of 50 questions, 800 flashcards and 60 comprehensive key notes split across all 3 topics, plus a mistakes bank and the Readiness Score.

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Exam details are summarized from the official candidate information available in October 2026. HKSI Institute changes formats and fees, so confirm with Hong Kong Securities and Investment Institute (HKSI Institute) before you book. HKSIMock is not affiliated with the HKSI Institute or the SFC.

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