With the aim of supporting capacity building and talent development for banking professionals, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has been working together with the banking industry to introduce an industry-wide competency framework - "Enhanced Competency Framework (ECF) for Banking Practitioners.

Since the implementation of ECF in 2018, various programmes for different job functions in banking industry have been developed and integrated into The Hong Kong Institute of Bankers' ("HKIB") flagship Certified Banker (CB) Programme which offer generalist, specialist, and strategic topics. The rationale for putting all programme under one professional banking qualification is to promote an industry-based common qualifications benchmark. While ECF programmes offer "role-based" knowledge and certification to relevant practitioners, CB is offering a vocational qualification pathway for further career advancement, being continuously enhanced to nurture more holistic banking professionals and ultimately, supporting the industry to develop a continuous learning culture and a sustainable talent pool so as to maintain the competitiveness of Hong Kong as an international financial centre.

The Enhanced Competency Framework on Compliance (hereinafter referred to as “ECF-Compliance”) is a non-statutory framework which sets out the common and core competencies and capabilities required of compliance practitioners in the Hong Kong’s banking industry.  The objectives of the ECF-Compliance are twofold:

(a)    To develop a sustainable talent pool of compliance practitioners for the banking industry; and
(b)    To raise and maintain the professional competence of existing compliance practitioners in the banking industry.

Although the ECF-Compliance is not a mandatory licensing regime, authorized institutions (AIs) are encouraged to adopt it for purposes including but not limited to:

(a)    Serving as a benchmark to determine the level of competence required and assess the ongoing competence of relevant employees;
(b)    Supporting relevant employees to attend training programmes and examinations that meet the ECF-Compliance benchmark;
(c)    Supporting the continuing professional development (CPD) of relevant employees; and
(d)    Promoting the ECF-Compliance as an industry-recognised qualification, including for recruitment purposes. 

For more details, please refer to the HKMA’s Guide to Enhanced Competency Framework on Compliance. 

Scope of Application

The ECF-compliance is intended to apply to staff whose primary responsibilities involve performing the compliance function (other than AML/CFT compliance) within an AI.  Specifically, it is aimed at RPs located in the Hong Kong office of an AI who perform the compliance job roles as listed below.

Role 1 - General Compliance

Role 2 - Investment and Insurance Compliance

Competency Standards

The competency standards of the ECF-Compliance are set at two levels:  

1. Core Level – applicable to junior level with less than 5 years of work experience in the compliance function.

2. Professional Level – applicable to middle to senior level staff with 5 years or above of work experience in the compliance function.

Certification

RPs may apply to the HKIB for certification as an Associate Compliance Professional (ACOP) or a Certified Compliance Professional - General Compliance Stream (CCOP(GC)) or a Certified Compliance Professional - Investment and Insurance Compliance Stream (CCOP(IIC)) upon completing the above qualifications and fulfilling the minimum relevant work experience requirement.

ACOP – (1) successfully completed all the 3 core level training modules (Modules 1 to 3) and obtained a pass in the relevant examination of each module or (2) grandfathered pursuant to the criteria specified in the Grandfathering section below.

CCOP(GC)# – (1) successfully completed the professional level training module (Module 4) and obtained a pass in the relevant examination of the module on top of the Core Level qualification plus at least 5 years’ relevant work experience in the general compliance functions within an AI) or (2) grandfathered pursuant to the criteria specified in the Grandfathering section below.

CCOP(IIC)# – (1) successfully completed the professional level training module (Module 4) and (Module 5) and obtained a pass in the relevant examination of the modules on top of the Core Level qualification plus at least 5 years’ relevant work experience in the investment and/or insurance compliance functions within an AI) or (2) grandfathered pursuant to the criteria specified in the Grandfathering section below.

# The 5 years of relevant work experience should be accumulated within the 10 years immediately prior to the date of application for certification, but it does not need to be continuous.

Training and Examination

Core Level

A core level training certificate "Advanced Certificate for ECF on Compliance” will be given to candidates who have successfully completed all the 3 core level training modules (Module 1 to 3) and obtained a pass at the relevant examination of each module.

Entry Requirement for Core Level

The Programme is open to members and non-members of HKIB. Learners must fulfil the stipulated minimum entry requirements:

• Students of Associate Degree (AD)/Higher Diploma (HD) in any disciplines (QF L4); OR

• Equivalent qualifications or above; OR

• Mature applicants with either at least three years of work experience in banking and finance or equivalent with recommendation from employer.

Remark: Mature applicants (aged 21 or above) who do not possess the above academic qualifications but with relevant banking experience and recommendation from their employers will be considered on individual merit.

Training Duration and Training Fee

#Digital version of training material (e.g. PPT Slides) will be provided before training commencement.

Professional Level

The Professional level training programme of the ECF-Compliance consists of two modules. A professional level training award “Professional Certificate for ECF on Compliance (General Compliance Stream)” will be given to candidates who have successfully completed the training of Module 4 and obtained a pass at the relevant examination of the module on top of the Core Level qualification. A professional level training award “Professional Certificate for ECF on Compliance (Investment and Insurance Compliance Stream)” will be given to candidates who have successfully completed the training of Module 4 and 5 and obtained a pass at the relevant examination of each module on top of the Core Level qualification.

Entry Requirement for Professional Level

The Programme is open to members and non-members of HKIB. Learners must fulfil the stipulated minimum entry requirements:

Professional Level (General Compliance Stream)

• Advanced Certificate for ECF-Compliance awarded by HKIB; OR

• Grandfathered for ECF-Compliance (Core Level) ; OR

• Grandfathered ECF-Compliance (Investment and Insurance Compliance Stream)

Professional Level (Investment and Insurance Compliance Stream)

• Advanced Certificate for ECF-Compliance awarded by HKIB; OR

• Grandfathered for ECF-Compliance (Core Level) ; OR

• Professional Certificate for ECF-Compliance (General Compliance Stream) awarded by HKIB; OR

• Grandfathered ECF-Compliance (General Compliance Stream)

Training Duration and Training Fee

#Digital version of training material (e.g. PPT Slides) will be provided before training commencement.

Training and Examination Enrolment

Applicants can submit the electronic application form to make online enrolment.

Late entries for training programmes are accepted up to 7 days after the stipulated application deadlines. An additional late entry fee of HKD200 applies.

Late entries for examinations are accepted up to 14 days after the stipulated application deadlines. An additional late entry fee of HKD200 applies.

Exemption

An RP may be exempted from specified modules based on completion of eligible training programmes. Please refer to the detailed list below of eligible training programmes for modular exemption:

Grandfathering

An RP may be grandfathered on a one-off basis (i.e. within the grandfathering application period from 1 February 2023 to 31 January 2024) based on the required work experience. Such work experience need not be continuous. The detailed grandfathering requirements are as follows:

Core Level

• At least 3 years of relevant work experience in the general compliance function (for Role 1) or in the investment and/or insurance compliance function (for Role 2) as specified in Annex 1 of the HKMA Guide; AND

• Employed by an AI at the time of application.

Professional Level

• At least 8 years of relevant work experience in the general compliance function (for Role 1) or in the investment and/ or insurance compliance function (for Role 2) as specified in Annex 1, of which at least 3 years must be gained from respective Professional Level job roles; AND

• Employed by an AI at the time of application.

Existing RPs who meet the above criteria can submit their grandfathering applications to the HKIB from 1 February 2023 to 31 January 2024. A one-off grandfathering fee of HKD1,100 (for Core Level and one stream for Professional Level or HKD2,150 for two streams of Professional Level) will apply.

Annual renewal of certification and CPD Requirements

The ECF-Compliance certifications are subject to annual renewal by HKIB. Certification holders are required to meet the annual Continuing Professional Development (CPD) requirements and pay an annual certification fee to renew the certification. For Core Level qualification, a minimum of 10 CPD hours is required for each calendar year, of which at least 5 CPD hours should be on topics related to compliance, legal and regulatory requirements, risk management and ethics. For Professional Level qualifications, a minimum of 12 CPD hours is required for each calendar year, of which at least 6 hours should be on topics related to compliance, legal and regulatory requirements, risk management and ethics.

For details, please refer to the Overview of HKIB CPD Scheme under HKIB website.

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