The spotlight naturally falls on the individual finalists during the SCMP/IFPHK Financial Planner Awards, but within the industry another category is watched almost as closely.

That is the Company for Financial Planning Excellence award given to employers with the highest cumulative total of individual prize winners across the competition's three rounds.

This year, the title went to Convoy Financial Services in the independent financial advisory (IFA) sector, Manulife (International) for insurance, and Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) among the banking industry contenders.

The prize is seen as validation of the approach these organisations take to training, professional qualifications, and the holistic concept of financial planning.

"The awards provide a level playing field for contestants from all three major industry sectors," says Dennis Lau, chief executive of the Institute of Financial Planners of Hong Kong (IFPHK). "The support from so many companies and the success their employees achieve illustrate the importance of the competition to them."