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INTRODUCTION
The Financial Industry Competency Standards is a comprehensive quality assurance framework with a certification and accreditation system that aims at raising the quality of our financial workforce and training providers. It comprises a set of standards with associated curriculum guide that relates to the competencies required for practitioners in specific job roles.
The FICS framework encompasses job families across all sectors such as Compliance, Corporate Banking, Corporate Finance, Financial Markets, Fund Management, General Insurance, Life Insurance, Private Equity, Risk Management, Securities & Futures and Wealth Management.
The FICS is developed by the industry, for the industry. It has the strong support of leading financial institutions and industry associations, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA). It is aligned with the structure and requirements of the Singapore Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) system and recognised as the basis for WSQ awards for the financial services industry.
The Institute of Banking and Finance (IBF) is the national accreditation and certification agency for financial competency under the Financial Industry Competency Standards (FICS) framework.
Key Features
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Role-Specific Competencies - The framework sets out clearly what are the competency requirements for the different jobs, and how training, assessment and certification should be conducted. |
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Portable - Being industry-wide, the framework facilitates ease of identification of common competencies using a common platform for standards, assessment and certification. Competencies which are portable across functional boundaries can be recognised if the holder moves to another industry segment which utilises these skills and knowledge.
Going forward, the vision is to attain mutual recognition in overseas jurisdictions to help reduce the cost and resource burden on international mobility of financial professionals. |
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Robust Portfolio-Based Certification - The portfolio-based certification approach helps ensure that the certification process will provide a reliable and accurate assessment of a person's ability to meet demands of a job consistently over time. The certification requirements go beyond using a single examination route to include a combination of examination and workplace assessment instruments. |
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Modular - The FICS is structured around competencies required for the various job roles in the financial services sector. It is modular, allowing individuals greater options to select the role-based training they require. |
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Multiple Pathways - Certification requirements go beyond single examination route to include combination of examination and workplace assessment instruments such as case studies, simulations, role plays, etc. |
FICS and WSQ
The Financial Industry Competency Standards (FICS) were developed by IBF and jointly supported by Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) and MAS. They are aligned with the structure and requirements of the Singapore Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) system and recognised as the basis for WSQ awards for the financial services industry. Financial services practitioners who have obtained the FICS Statements of Attainment (SOAs) for all the relevant competencies of a job role can be awarded the WSQ Qualification for that job role. On the other hand, FICS Certification being recognition of professional achievement is only awarded to practitioners who meet the professional experience requirements in addition to obtaining the SOAs.
WSQ is a national credentialing system that trains, develops, assesses and recognises adult workers for competencies they need to stay employable and competitive. With clear progression pathways, workers and professionals can use WSQ to upgrade their skills and plan their careers. Training and assessment are competency-based, thus ensuring that people who are certified under WSQ are able to perform their job according to industry- defined standards. Experienced and competent individuals, however, can opt for WSQ certification without training. The quality of WSQ is assured by WDA, from the development of competency standards, accreditation of training providers to the award of its qualifications. |