Overview

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 in Hong Kong.

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 Guide to Enhanced Competency Framework on Compliance issued by HKMA dated 27 September 2022 ("HKMA Guide").

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 below qualifications and fulfilling the minimum relevant work experience requirement.

ACOP – (1) have 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) have 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) have 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.

ECF Affiliate:
Learners who have successfully completed a HKIB professional qualification programme (including training and examination requirements) but yet to fulfil the requirement of Relevant Practitioners or required years of relevant work experience for certification will be automatically granted to learners. Ordinary Membership with membership fee for the awarding year waived will also be granted to learners. 

For details about ECF Affiliate, please contact HKIB at (852) 2153 7800 or email at cs@hkib.org.

Training and Examination

Core Level

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

Remark:
Module 1 and Module 2 are identical for both ECF on Operational Risk Management and ECF on Compliance. Hence, a learner who has completed Module 1 and/or Module 2 under either of these ECF streams will not be required to complete the same module(s) under the other ECF stream.

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 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

^ HKIB student members can enjoy 25% off training fee discount and 50% off examination fee discount respectively.

Examination Format and Fee

^ HKIB student members can enjoy 25% off training fee discount and 50% off examination fee discount respectively.

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 completed 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 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.

^ HKIB student members can enjoy 25% off training fee discount and 50% off examination fee discount respectively.

Examination Format

^ HKIB student members can enjoy 25% off training fee discount and 50% off examination fee discount respectively.

Training and Examination Enrolment

Applicants can submit the application via MyHKIB.

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's Guide to ECF-Compliance; 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 the HKMA's Guide to ECF-Compliance, 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.

The deadline for the one-off grandfathering arrangement is 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) respectively 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 comply with the annual Continuing Professional Development (CPD) requirements and pay an annual certification fee to renew the certification. For Core Level qualification, the requirement is a minimum of 10 verifiable CPD hours for each calendar year, of which at least 5 CPD hours should be earned from activities related to topics of compliance, legal and regulatory requirements, risk management and ethics. For Professional Level qualifications, the requirement is a minimum of 12 verifiable CPD hours for each calendar year, of which at least 6 hours should be earned from activities related to topics of compliance, legal and regulatory requirements, risk management and ethics.

For ECF Affiliate, at least 3-hours of CPD within the scopes mentioned in HKIB CPD Scheme is required annually for recertification.

Any excess CPD hours accumulated within a particular calendar year cannot be carried forward to the following year.

The CPD requirements will be waived for the first calendar year (ending 31 December) of certification and grandfathering.

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

Integration of ECF in Certified Banker (CB)

Certified Banker (CB) is a professional banking qualification programme developed and offered by HKIB. This common qualification benchmark is intended to raise the professional competency of banking and financial practitioners in Hong Kong to meet modern demands, while providing a transparent standard with international recognition. “ECF-Compliance (Core and Professional Level)” have already been incorporated in CB (Stage I/II) respectively. You may refer to the CB Programme structure to plan for your learning path. Learners who have obtained a pass at the relevant examination can then apply for an exemption for the elective module “ECF-Compliance (Core Level)” of the CB (Stage I) programme and the module “ECF-Compliance (Professional Level)” of the CB (Stage II) programme.

Subsidy & Scholarship

Subsidy

ECF-Compliance (Professional Level) Module 5: Investment and Insurance Compliance is one of the eligible training programmes under the Pilot Programme to Enhance Talent for the Asset and Wealth Management Sector (the WAM Pilot Programme). Eligible candidates working in the wealth and asset management industry can apply for the scheme. 

For details, please visit HKIB Supports on Government Subsidy Page.

Professional Qualification Programme Scholarship Scheme

Each year, HKIB selects the top two candidates from each competency level (Core/Professional Level) and award them with the scholarship as recognition. This is the way for HKIB to promote academic excellence and motivate future students to push themselves to achieve same high level of performance. The two top candidates in each competency level (Core/Professional Level), provided that all other granting requirements are met, can be awarded with a cash incentive (HKD4,000 for Core Level; HKD5,000 for Professional Level), and a study coupon which can provide candidates to study one more professional qualification offered by HKIB with all training and examination fees waived. 

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