It is good to get in touch with you through this message.

The AGM for the year 2009-10 will be held on 24th September 2010 at Mumbai. The annual report has been mailed to all of you.

Revised CAIIB

It gives me a great satisfaction that we have launched the revised CAIIB. Considering the recent news about the impending talent crisis in the banking system the revised CAIIB will be able to play an useful role in helping bank executives seeking specialization in the given verticals. It is interesting to note that the change in the CAIIB syllabus was driven by some representations from the candidates who had suggested that the course needed some revision as the papers are specialized in nature and not all the candidates have equal knowledge of all modules. For example, a person working in the rural areas may not be fully conversant with treasury aspects of banking. Simultaneously, as JAIIB included topics such as I.T and marketing, there was a demand for introducing more specialization in CAIIB. In this connection, the HR departments of the banks had indicated that the qualification should lead to some specialist knowledge. Another aspect was that post CAIIB, the mobility of personnel from one banking vertical to another should also be preceded by some knowledge inputs on the given area of banking.

In view of these feedbacks, the institute had constituted a committee under the Chairmanship of Prof Y.K.Bhushan and based on the Committee’s recommendations, developed a new approach to CAIIB and a revised syllabus. The course contents have been carefully developed so as to be relevant to the modern vertical based banking workspace and SBUs of banks. In arriving at the course content, syllabus and process, the Institute had, through a series of meetings, consulted the HR departments and subject matter specialists.

The revised format of CAIIB underlines the fact that current day banking requires general as well as domain specific knowledge. It is seen that, in the specialization era, a candidate who has worked under one vertical in a bank for several years and has expertise in that area may not be equally comfortable working in a new vertical unless the knowledge of the new vertical is made available in a professional manner. Such persons need an opportunity to learn the nuances of a new vertical. Also, a person working in a given area in banking needs to keep pace with the current developments; which given the work pressure may not be automatic. It is to meet with these divergent needs that we have formulated the new CAIIB with two compulsory papers and 11 Electives, out of which the candidate has to choose any one. While the compulsory papers are Advanced Bank Management and Bank Financial Management, the electives are Corporate Banking, Rural Banking, International Banking, Retail Banking, Co-operative Banking, Financial Advising, Human Resources Management, Information Technology, Risk Management, Central Banking, and Treasury Management.

The first examination under the revised syllabus will be held in January/February 2011. Comprehensive study material for each paper is being published in English. Material in Hindi will also be hosted on Institute’s portal in due course of time. As the Institute has introduced the specialized subjects as elective papers, the name of the elective will be included in the Certificate/Completion Memorandum to be issued to the successful candidate.

CAIIB and CPD

Even as we developed the new design of CAIIB it became clear that the elective based approach will help in addressing the needs of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) of candidates, who have already passed CAIIB, in the current or any previous version. It is now provided that such candidates can appear for elective subjects of their choice. On passing the same, the candidate will be given a separate certificate on the given elective as a post CAIIB qualification.

This is an additional window provided to professional bankers to broad base their knowledge.

Lectures

The 4th R K Talwar Memorial Lecture – 2010 was held at Mumbai on July 28, 2010. The event was graced by the presence of the RBI Governor, Chairman of SBI and the Deputy Governors of RBI besides several senior bank personnel. The main focus of the Memorial Lecture was a speech by Dr Rakesh Mohan former Deputy Governor.R.B.I. The topic was “The Future of Financial Regulation: Some Reflections”. While the speech has been uploaded on the portal, some of the important aspects of the said speech are briefly mentioned below:

• Emergence of the global financial crisis has led to a new wave of thinking on all issues related to both monetary policy and financial regulation.
• The first lesson from the crisis is that both monetary policy and financial regulation had tended to be formula bound and hence predictable. What should be the new framework that looks at other issues relating to maintenance of financial stability besides targeting inflation? Will the new framework necessitate less separation between monetary policy and financial regulation?
• The second lesson is that the financial world which is highly susceptible to systemic risk, herd behavior and moral hazard requires consistent regulatory intervention.
• The third lesson is that there is an important role for the exercise of judgment by both monetary authorities and financial regulators.
• The fourth lesson is that regulation must be enforced through active and intrusive supervision.
• The fifth and final lesson is that the traditional virtues of prudent fiscal policy, stable monetary policy, along with the maintenance of sustainable external accounts, should not be lost sight of in the presence of highly flexible financial markets.

E-Learning

One of the highlights of the recent months was the launch of the E-Learning for JAIIB. The E-Learning was launched by the Chairman of SBI and I am happy to state that the E-learning kit was made operational immediately thereafter. It gives satisfaction to all of us to note that a large number of candidates have registered for the E-learning package. The average time spent by a student under the E-learning module is now around 30 hours. But it will increase. The Institute is moving towards converting all of its courseware into e-learning. I am convinced that the future of education will be technology driven.

New initiatives

All the examinations being conducted by the institute have met with good response. The current AML/KYC certificate examination is being revised and will be launched as an advance version in collaboration with International Compliance Association of U.K. We are also launching a customer service and banking codes and standards course for the bankers. Candidates to this course will have access to a state of the art simulation on handling customers, apart from a dedicated courseware. This course is being launched in association with Banking Codes and Standards Board of India.

The institute has, in addition to the courseware, adopted e-learning and virtual classes as the main plant of delivery. It is my ardent desire to see that the Institute becomes a virtual institute of excellence offering a one stop window for all courses on Banking and Finance. God willing and with your continued support, one day, this will become a reality.

Best Wishes