Institute granted new Royal Charter
Our Institute – the first institute of bankers in the world - was founded one hundred and forty-four years ago, in 1875, as the Institute of Bankers in Scotland. To mark our centenary in 1975, we received our first Royal Charter and became the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland. We are delighted to be able to tell you that we have just received a new Royal Charter, establishing our Institute as the Chartered Banker Institute, the UK’s professional body for bankers with growing global impact and influence.
The award of the Institute’s new Royal Charter recognises the collective efforts of our Council, staff, supporting banks and, in particular, our 33,000 members to enhance and sustain professionalism in banking in recent years. We remain extremely proud of our heritage, and of the “Scottish principles” of banking on which we were founded and continue to promulgate. Becoming the Chartered Banker Institute ensures we are relevant to bankers across the UK and beyond, and gives our growing membership a new, global identity linked by a common commitment to high standards of professionalism in banking.
What Does This Mean For Me?
Becoming the Chartered Banker Institute is formal recognition of the leading role our Institute plays in enhancing and sustaining professionalism in banking, with a remit, and impact and influence that extending throughout the UK and internationally. It increases the recognition and status of the “Chartered Banker” designation, which should help our members’ career prospects.
On a practical basis, our new Royal Charter means that you should now refer to yourself as a member of the Chartered Banker Institute, and the designatory letters awarded to members are changing to reflect this. Whilst you will still be able to use existing designatory letters (e.g. “MCIBS”) if you wish, you are entitled to use new designatory letters as set out below:
Status Previous New
Fellow FCIBS FCBI
Member MCIBS MCBI
Associate ACIBS ACBI
Certificated CCIBS CCBI
We will be issuing members with new designation certificates over the course of the year, but the new designatory letters are effective immediately for all members.
Please note that there are no changes to the following professional designations: Chartered Banker, Associate Chartered Banker, Certificated Professional Banker, Professional Financial Adviser and Professional Mortgage Adviser.
Governance Changes
Our new Royal Charter also modernises our Institute’s governance. In June 2019, Council was replaced by a new Board of Trustees. Any recruitment for this, and other positions, is advertised here: CBI | Vacancies (charteredbanker.com). In June 2019 we also completed the recruitment for our new Membership Forum, responsible for ensuring that members’ views are appropriately reflected in the direction and activities of the Institute. There will be many opportunities to get involved with the Institute in the coming months and years.