Wide Support for New Banking Standards

With ever more scrutiny on culture and conduct in banking, the Chartered Banker: Professional Standards Board (CB:PSB) is leading cultural change in banking by publishing today a revised Code of Professional Conduct and updating its Foundation Standard for Professional Bankers1.

• See www.cbpsb.org
• The CB:PSB was launched by the Chartered Banker Institute in 2011, in partnership with eight leading banks in the UK. CB:PSB members are Barclays, Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, RBS, Santander, Tesco Bank, United Trust Bank and Virgin Money; covering around 350,000 individual employees.

These publications reinforce the importance and relevance of the CB:PSB’s work and demonstrate alignment with the FCA and PRA Individual Accountability Regime (IAR). Indeed, the CB:PSB’s work goes considerably beyond regulatory requirements, enabling banks and bankers not only to demonstrate accountability but the exacting professional conduct and expertise standards set by the CB:PSB.

CB:PSB firms have either adopted or subscribed to the Code of Professional Conduct meaning that around 70% of the UK banking workforce is covered by a common Code.2 The revised Code lays the foundation for firms’ compliance with the Individual Conduct Rules (ICR), with the approach augmented through the CB:PSB’s revised Foundation Standard. Over 185,000 individual bankers have achieved the Foundation Standard to date and the revised standard will ensure that their achievement can be validated into 2016.

Lady Susan Rice CBE, Chair of CB:PSB commented,

“Taken together, the new Code of Professional Conduct and Foundation Standard offer a way not just to meet but to exceed the ICR. They also provide some commonality in how the Rules will be met across the industry – which regulators and consumer representatives have welcomed. The industry wants to demonstrate accountability which, in turn, will help restore customer confidence and trust. It’s reassuring that professional standards – that go beyond regulatory requirements – are playing such an important role.”

Tracey McDermott, Acting Chief Executive of the FCA commented:

“We welcome the publication of the new Chartered Banker Code of Professional Conduct. Industry-led initiatives to improve professional standards are important in supporting our regulation and helping to restore trust and confidence in banks.” 2

Dame Colette Bowe, Chairman of the Banking Standards Board, said:

“We welcome the good work of the Chartered Banker: Professional Standards Board in producing a revised code of professional conduct to align with the FCA and PRA individual conduct rules. I hope this initiative will prove to be a valuable step in advancing ethical and professional norms within the banking industry.

In the context of the BSB’s work on professionalism currently underway, with a study supported by Leeds University, we will be following the introduction of the revised code closely to understand the impact and potential of such codes on competence and culture across the industry.”

Sue Lewis, Chair of the Financial Services Consumer Panel added:

“The Financial Services Consumer Panel strongly supports and encourages initiatives which seek to improve culture and professionalism in the banking industry. We will shortly publish research that shows that there is still a long way to go before banks put their customers first. We hope that individual bank staff will subscribe to the revised Chartered Banker Code of Professional Conduct. By being aligned with the conduct rules, the Code emphasises the need for bankers to act with trust, integrity and put customers at the heart of what they do. A positive culture from top to bottom is necessary to rebuild trust and confidence in the industry”