The ICAEW has been accused of selling its qualification cheaply, following an ad campaign that encouraged members from rivals to gain the institute’s ACA qualification 'without study or formal exams'.

The advert, which appeared in Malaysian business magazine, The Edge, has enraged rival institutes and is likely to irritate ICAEW critics who believe the institute is not doing enough to burnish the credentials of the supposedly superior ACA qualification.

‘The ICAEW should now admit that it is an equivalent qualification to ACCA, as it is prepared to take ACCA members without formal assessment: the members of accountancy bodies are professionals who have completed high-quality formal qualifications, not people who buy membership of a club,’ an ACCA spokesman said of the advert.

In response to criticism, the ICAEW said candidates would still be ‘rigorously assessed’ by the institute’s assessment committee. The candidates do not have to attend an ICAEW exam centre, which explained the wording ‘without formal exams’ in the advert.

An ICAEW statement said: ‘If this has been misinterpreted, for whatever reason, then details will be clarified at the workshops promoted by the advertisement. ICAEW is committed to attracting high-quality applicants through this innovative scheme which is receiving popular support in Malaysia.’