Pearson's public DECINSTITUTE exam list names it plainly: CBA1.3x, CBA Level 1. That single 60-minute sitting is the whole Level 1 credential - and it is also the gate the Level 2 vignette exam checks before Level 2 scheduling opens.
DEC's own exam overview publishes the format: 75 multiple-choice questions in 60 minutes, three options per question with only one correct, and the pass level at 75 percent. DEC itself advises a pace of slightly less than one minute per question.
Every DEC enrollment includes two test attempts per order - published in DEC's exam overview for all four exams. Results arrive by email within about a week (DEC's product page phrases it as within five business days).
Pearson's live registration flow for CBA1.3x offers both "In-person at a test center" and "Online with OnVUE" - verified on the delivery-models step for this exact exam code on 2026-10-08, not assumed from a catalog line.
What the CBA Level 1 Exam Actually Covers
DEC's CBA program page lays the Level 1 syllabus out with a technology pillar that runs deeper than its CDAA sibling: 18 topics spanning blockchain history and principles, databases versus ledgers versus DLTs, cryptography, consensus mechanisms, architectures, the blockchain technology stack, smart contracts, cryptocurrencies, tokens, protocols, wallets, privacy, scalability, interoperability, dApps, DAOs, and oracles. Business and Economics carries 14 topics - innovation and adoption principles, blockchain ecosystems and economics, tokenisation, governance, sustainability, DeFi, NFTs, and the supply-chain and self-sovereign-identity applications that fit the charter's enterprise audience. A Legal and Regulatory pillar completes the three-area structure.
The question style matters as much as the syllabus. DEC's Level 1 acknowledgement tells candidates that each question offers three options with only one correct - and that some options may be partially correct, so the job is picking the best answer, not a merely defensible one. Some questions lean on well-known industry abbreviations that DEC expects you to know from preparation or work experience.
There are no registration requirements for Level 1 - no degree, no work experience, no preparatory course. DEC recommends four to six weeks of study at about eight hours per week, and the bundled study booklet with sample questions is included in the enrollment price. The credential that follows the pass - after the one-time membership registration - is the CBA I designation, valid three years with a short refresher program at renewal.
Can You Take the CBA1.3x Exam From Home?
Yes - verified at the strongest public tier on 2026-10-08. Pearson's live DECINSTITUTE registration flow lists exactly four public exams, and the delivery-models step for CBA1.3x (exam id 51786) presents both "In-person at a test center" and "Online with OnVUE". Underneath that per-exam check sit Pearson's DEC Institute program page - which offers both routes explicitly - and the program's dedicated OnVUE page with the full at-home minimums.
The at-home route is a real proctored sitting with a hard environment bar. Windows 10 or macOS 14 or higher, one display only, no headphones, at least 6 Mbps down and 2 Mbps up, every other application closed. Virtual machines, VPNs, corporate networks, and second screens are prohibited. DEC's product page notes the online exam is available daily around the clock while the test-center exam runs weekly - so the home route is also the faster route to a slot.
The scheduling path is not a standalone Pearson signup. You enroll in the CBA exam on the DEC webshop, then access the Pearson scheduling tool through your DEC dashboard, where the OnVUE-versus-center choice appears. Check-in opens 30 minutes before the appointment with technology checks, ID photos, and a 360-degree room scan - and failing the published minimums on exam day can cancel the sitting and forfeit the fee.
What the Sitting Costs - and What the Ladder Above It Costs
DEC's official FAQ publishes the list ladder: Level 1 at USD 499, Level 2 at USD 599, and the Level 1 plus Level 2 package at USD 999 - with the study booklet and the Pearson VUE exam fees already included, and no additional costs on top. The live DEC webshop told a slightly different story on 2026-10-08: the CBA I Exam and Study Booklet product displayed USD 461.61 tax included, and the two-level package displayed USD 924.14. Treat the FAQ figure as the published list price and the webshop figure as the operative checkout amount on the day you enroll.
Six scholarship categories cut the package price for eligible applicants - access at USD 399, student at USD 499, academia at USD 599, regulator at USD 699, active member institution at USD 799, and supportive member institution at USD 899. They are awarded monthly against an application, not automatic discounts. The optional DEC Association membership adds a one-time EUR 19 administrative fee.
What the enrollment buys is worth reading line by line: the exam sitting itself, the study booklet with sample questions, and two attempts at the exam. The second attempt is included value - a failed first sitting does not force a new enrollment. What it does not buy is the designation by itself: the CBA I title follows the pass plus the one-time membership registration, and the full charter requires Level 2 as well.
Where CBA Level 1 Sittings Go Wrong
- •The pace. Seventy-five questions in 60 minutes is 48 seconds per question - and DEC's own acknowledgement warns that some options are partially correct, so the best-answer judgment has to happen fast. Candidates who prepared on slow, untimed question banks feel the clock first.
- •The cryptography and privacy depth. The CBA technology pillar runs 18 topics deep - databases versus ledgers versus DLTs, cryptography, the full technology stack, privacy. Enterprise candidates who know the business cases but treat the cryptography as a skim topic lose the pillar the exam weighs heaviest.
- •The abbreviation fluency. DEC expects well-known industry abbreviations to be familiar from preparation or work experience. A candidate whose exposure is all supply-chain pilots and no protocol vocabulary loses points on recognition, not reasoning.
- •The environment bar. OnVUE's single-display rule, closed-application sweep, VPN prohibition, and 30-minute check-in with a room scan end sittings before they start when the home setup is improvised - and the fee is forfeited, not refunded.
How the Service Works
What You Get
A CBA Level 1 sitting handled by someone who works the blockchain material for a living - the 18-topic technology pillar, the three-option best-answer format, and the 48-second pace are their daily environment, not a cram subject. The delivery route is your choice: at home on OnVUE with every minimum pre-cleared on your own machine, or at a Pearson test center.
Every official requirement is handled by the book - the DEC webshop enrollment, the dashboard scheduling, the ID and environment checks. And the commercial risk sits with the service, not with you: the fee is due only after the agreed result posts.
Handling It Safely
DEC's charter is a registered trademark with a Code of Conduct and Ethics behind it, and Pearson's proctoring is built to catch exactly the shortcuts lesser services attempt - virtual machines, second screens, remote-control tools. The service works inside the real constraints: genuine environment preparation, genuine identity handling, no prohibited technology anywhere near the sitting.
Discretion is architectural. Your DEC dashboard, your result email, and your membership registration stay under your control, and nothing about the engagement is discussed with third parties.
Payment: After the Result
The model is the same one the whole site runs on: the service fee is due only after the agreed result posts. No large upfront retainer, no paying twice for a failed attempt.
If the result does not post, you do not pay the service fee. The DEC enrollment itself - with its two included attempts - stays yours either way.
Sittings Handled
Fifteen years in supply chain and I could talk traceability pilots all day - but the cryptography pillar was a wall. They were straight with me about where the exam actually bites, handled the CBA1.3x sitting on OnVUE, and the pass email arrived inside a week. Fee after the result, as agreed.
The two-attempts rule was the safety net I never needed. System test, single monitor, room scan, 75 questions - everything rehearsed before exam day, nothing improvised on it. Paid after the pass posted.
They flagged the dashboard scheduling path before I booked - enroll on the DEC webshop, schedule inside the DEC account, not a standalone Pearson signup. That kind of detail is why the sitting itself felt routine.
CBA Level 1 Exam Help - Questions
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