The Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI), the ICMA Centre at the Henley Business School and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) of the US announce that they have joined forces to support and enhance education, training and certification in financial compliance.
The CISI is the largest and most widely respected professional body for those who work in the securities and investment industry in the UK and abroad and has developed a suite of well recognized and supported programs centered around product knowledge and regulation to support practitioners in the financial services industry. Since 2006, the ICMA Centre and FINRA have developed and offered a highly regarded Diploma in Capital Markets Regulation and Compliance aimed at mid-level securities professionals. With the development of the CISI 's Diploma in Investment Compliance, the industry was faced with two separately recognized routes to certification,and it was agreed that, by joining forces, the parties can work together to better enhance the professional credentials of capital markets practitioners in the UK.
The agreement will mean that those who have already achieved the Diploma in Capital Markets Regulation and Compliance will become members of the CISI and those with a partially completed qualification will receive appropriate exemptions from the jointly supported Diploma in Investment Compliance. In addition, the ICMA Centre will work with the CISI to deliver advanced certification for those who have completed the Diploma in Investment Compliance and whose needs are for expanded coverage of topics required by senior compliance staff in financial institutions. Additional details will be published on the CISI Web site (www.cisi.org) in the coming days.
In announcing this new collaboration, Simon Culhane, Chartered FCSI, CEO of CISI, said: "We are very pleased to be working with the ICMA Centre and FINRA - two highly respected institutions that have a long history in capital markets education and training."
Professor John Board, Director of the ICMA Centre, added, "Merging of these qualifications will lead to a cleaner and better defined route to the professional certification and demonstration of competence that is so much in demand following the financial crisis."
Paul Andrews, Vice President and Managing Director of FINRA, noted that "this combination is the next logical step in our four-year partnership with the ICMA Centre. By joining forces, we are able to create an even more robust program."
