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Certification Programs

ICBA certification programs are designed to raise the standards of professionalism in the industry and give consumers a consistent stamp of approval to look for when selecting a banker.

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About ICBA Education certification programs

ICBA certification programs are designed to raise the standards of professionalism in the industry and give consumers a consistent stamp of approval to look for when selecting a banker.

To make this happen, respected members of the ICBA certification board establish baseline criteria in several areas of specialization. Then, experienced, nationally-recognized instructors create training programs that target the needs of community banks based on those criteria. Finally, competency testing is measured after completion and a certification designation is granted. Annual continuing professional education is then required to ensure participants remain current.

ICBA Education is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be submitted to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors through its website: nasbaregistry.org.

Certification News

Published quarterly, this newsletter is exclusive to bankers enrolled in one or more of ICBA’s certification programs. Each issue contains thought leadership from certification program instructors and a spotlight interview with a certified banker. Also included are important event dates and deadlines

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Audit Certification (CCBIA)

Designation: Certified Community Bank Internal Auditor (CCBIA) 
 
Requirement: Audit Institute; (30) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
This program is designed to provide tools and step-by-step procedures to establish and maintain an effective internal audit function within a community bank. Areas covered include: auditing basics, internal auditing working papers, auditing liabilities and other activities, auditing assets and bank information systems auditing.
Earn your Audit Certification at the ICBA Audit Institute Example Text
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Bank Security Certification (CCBSO)

Designation: Certified Community Bank Security Officer (CCBSO) 
 
Requirement: Bank Security Institute; (15) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
This program is designed to provide the Security Officer, regardless of the location or size of the bank, with critical information to meet regulatory requirements and provide strategic and tactical methods of security, robbery and fraud prevention and risk management.
Earn Your Bank Security Certification at the ICBA Bank Security Institute Example Text
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BSA/AML Certification (CBAP)

Designation: Certified BSA/AML Professional (CBAP)
 
Requirement: BSA/AML Institute; (20) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
The formal requirements for financial institution compliance under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) continue to be significant. This program covers all primary requirements of regulation and delivers guidance on best practice expectations in each area.
Earn Your BSA/AML Professional Certification at the ICBA BSA/AML Institute Example Text
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Commercial Lending Certification (CCLO)

Designation: Certified Commercial Loan Officer (CCLO)
 
Requirement: Commercial Lending Institute; (15) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
Loans are the most significant risk in most bank portfolios. This program assists in developing the necessary credit skills to maintain and manage a commercial credit portfolio as well as the analytical processes needed to reach a conclusion about the borrower's repayment ability.
Earn your Commercial Lending Certification at the ICBA Commercial Lending Institute Example Text
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Compliance Certification (CCBCO)

Designation: Certified Community Bank Compliance Officer (CCBCO)
 
Requirement: Compliance Institute; (30) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
The Compliance Institute is a comprehensive learning experience that covers the areas of regulatory compliance a community bank Compliance Officer is responsible for. This program covers: Developing a Compliance Program, Lending, Deposit and Operations Compliance.
Earn your Compliance Certification at the ICBA Compliance Institute Example Text
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Consumer Lending Certification (CCBCL)

Designation: Certified Community Bank Consumer Lender (CCBCL)
 
Requirement: Consumer Lending Institute; (15) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
Consumer lending presents a unique set of challenges by combining credit risk process with regulatory process. This program addresses the consumer lending decision and making sense of each step by covering the application process, financial statement analysis, credit analysis, loan structure, compliance, documentation procedures and closing.
Earn your Consumer Lending Certification at the ICBA Consumer Lending Institute Example Text
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Credit Analyst Certification (CCBCA)

Designation: Certified Community Bank Credit Analyst (CCBCA)
 
Requirement: Credit Analyst Institute; (15) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
The role of a credit analyst has evolved into a critical function in today's community banks. This program focuses on the necessary financial analysis skills needed by today's credit analysts, and addresses the additional expertise vital to a community bank's overall lending success.
Earn your Credit Analyst Certification at the ICBA Credit Analyst Institute Example Text
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Data & Analytics Certification (CCBDA)

Designation: Certified Community Bank Data Analyst (CCBDA)
 
Requirement: ICBA Data & Analytics Institute; (15) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
This certification program equips banking professionals with essential data analysis skills, focusing on leveraging Microsoft Excel tools like pivot tables, Power Query, and Power Pivot. Over 2.5 days, participants will learn to develop data strategies, perform in-depth analyses, and automate processes using real-world examples such as loan evaluations and expense reviews.
Earn your Certified Community Bank Data Analyst (CCBDA) designation at the ICBA Data and Analytics Institute. Example Text
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Enterprise Risk Management Certification (CCBRS)

Designation: Certified Community Bank Risk Specialist (CCBRS)
 
Requirement: Enterprise Risk Management Institute; (15 ) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
Participants of ICBA's new Enterprise Risk Management Institute will enrich and affirm their knowledge of the risk components that influence a bank’s function and soundness.
 

This new certification program focuses on strategies surrounding bank governance, credit risk, interest rate risk, liquidity risk, operational risk, compliance risk, and legal risk. The program includes comprehensive dialogue that brings all risk elements together to reveal the necessary components of a successful enterprise risk management (ERM) framework.

Earn your Community Bank Risk Specialist Certification at the ICBA Enterprise Risk Management Institute Example Text
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Information Technology Certification (CCBTO)

Designation: Certified Community Bank Technology Officer (CCBTO)
 
Requirement: Community Bank IT Institute; (30) Continuing Professional Education credits required every two years.
 
Information technology solutions continue to evolve. This creates opportunities for community banks to increase efficiency, improve service capabilities and better safeguard customers. This program addresses today’s community bank needs for managing and maximizing technology investments and shows IT managers and officers the solutions they can utilize to help strengthen existing IT capabilities, develop operational efficiencies and business continuity solutions, and more.
Earn your Community Bank Technology Officer Certification at the ICBA IT Institute Example Text
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Marketing Certification (CCBMS)

Designation: Certified Community Bank Marketing Strategist
 
Requirement: Marketing Institute; (15) Continuing Professional Education credits every two years.
 
The ICBA Marketing Certification program equips today’s bank marketing leaders with essential knowledge and skills. The program covers marketing strategy, brand and content management, digital channel optimization, data analytics for customer acquisition and retention, marketing compliance, and more. Participants gain practical tools and strategies to enhance existing marketing efforts and develop innovative approaches.
Earn your Marketing Certification (CCBMS) at the ICBA Marketing Institute. Example Text

Certification FAQ

ICBA Education offers 11 Certification Programs.  The certification programs are nationally recognized, professional designations and require the user to follow specific processes and procedures before a certification is granted.

These programs are governed and monitored by the ICBA Certification Board, which is made up of leadership bankers from the ICBA Bank Education Committee, Certified Community Bankers, attorneys, and Certification Program instructors.

Certificate programs are delivered online and are an ideal way to enhance professional skills, gain practical training, explore banking career growth, and affirm expertise. This program provides a certificate of completion but is not a certification program and requires no additional training after completion.

Certification programs are delivered through live classroom-style programs, and participants earn a certification designation showing successful completion. All our certification programs have Continuing Professional Education (CPE) requirements and therefore qualify as certification programs.

  1. Attend an ICBA institute in its entirety.

  2. Participate in all assigned case studies, small group work, presentations.

  3. Successfully pass all exams given as part of the Institute with a score of 70% or higher on each exam.

  1. ICBA certification exams are available through ICBA's online training portal. Test-takers can access the portal using their ICBA.org login credentials.

  2. All exams are timed and must be completed in one sitting. The timer cannot be paused. The number of questions and time limits vary by institute. Refer to the instructions provided during registration for details.

  3. You may not use the internet, institute materials, notes, or any third-party resources, including coworkers, to find answers.

  4. Testers will learn their exam score upon submission of their completed exam.

  5. Test-takers who do not pass the first exam will have one opportunity to retake it on a designated future date. Dates vary per institute.

Participants who fail to comply with the certification requirements will not receive a certification.

Yes, bankers can attend the institutes without pursuing certification, as it is optional. Many bankers choose to attend either to prepare for future certification or to earn Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credits.

Certification requires attendance and successful completion of an institute and its respective exam(s). There is a registration fee for each institute and a separate $500 testing fee for those who wish to take the exam(s) and become certified.

To keep a certification current, bankers need to complete the applicable Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credits every two years.

Thirty (30) CPE credits are required every two years for the following certifications:

  • Auditing – Certified Community Bank Internal Auditor (CCBIA)

  • Compliance – Certified Community Bank Compliance Officer (CCBCO), and

  • Information Technology – Certified Community Bank IT Officer (CCBTO)

Twenty (20) CPE credits are required every two years for the following certification:

  • BSA/AML – Certified BSA/AML Professional (CBAP)

Fifteen (15) CPE credits are required every two years for these certifications:

  • Bank Security – Certified Community Bank Security Officer (CCBSO)

  • Consumer Lending – Certified Community Bank Consumer Lender (CCBCL)

  • Credit Analysis – Certified Community Bank Credit Analyst (CCBCA).

  • Enterprise Risk Management - Certified Community Bank Risk Specialist (CCBRS)

  • Commercial Lending – Certified Commercial Loan Officer (CCLO)

  • Data & Analytics – Certified Community Bank Data Analyst (CCBDA)

  • Marketing – Community Bank Marketing Strategist (CCBMS)

All certification CPE requirements start the year following achievement of your certification. For example, if you achieve your certification in 2024, the CPE requirement starts on Jan. 1, 2025, and you have two full years to accumulate the required CPE credits by Dec. 31, 2026.

Certified bankers will be given access to the ICBA Online Certification Portfolio. This is a password protected area of the ICBA website where you will enter your CPE credits. Supporting documentation is required for all CPE entries.

Examples of qualified documentation include certificate of completion/attendance or a copy of a sign in sheet from the event validating your attendance. This document must include the attendee’s name, the date(s) of the training, and either the number of CPE provided or the start/end times of the session so that the correct number of CPE can be allocated.

(NOT eligible as documentation are receipts, confirmations, agendas, or event materials). This is also where you can pay the required $125 annual renewal fee.

Certified bankers are required to earn at least 50% of the required CPE credits through ICBA Education's live in-person or livestreamed events or by participation in live webinars where there is interaction between the attendee and/or the ability to interact with the speaker.

CPE can also be earned through live in-person, livestreamed events, or live webinar training from another source. The remaining CPE, up to 50%, may be accumulated through online training or self-study courses relevant to your certification.

No. Bankers with more than one certification cannot use their CPE credits towards more than one certification. For example, a banker with an Auditing Certification and Compliance Certification will need to get 30 hours of CPE for each designation, a total of 60 hours of CPE training every two years.

Bankers with the CBAP Certification must accumulate their CPE credits in topics related only to the Bank Secrecy Act and Anti-Money Laundering requirements. Due to its specialty area of expertise, all certified CBAP persons will be required to maintain current and timely knowledge of BSA/AML events through ongoing CPE.

ICBA Education adheres to the NASBA Statement on Standards for Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Programs. To calculate total CPE credit, determine the total number of instructional minutes and divide it by 50.

Fifty (50) minutes of participation in an instructed event is considered one (1) CPE credit for each program of learning. Note - time is deducted for scheduled lunch and breaks and is not included in the total instructional minutes.

We understand that your CPE submission is very important. For that reason, the ICBA staff work as quickly as possible to review and approve all CPE submissions. CPE approvals are typically completed within a two-week period. If you have questions related to a specific CPE submission, please call the ICBA Education staff at 800-422-7285.

If you don’t meet your CPE credit requirement within the two-year period, your certification will be terminated, and you will no longer be certified through ICBA Education. ICBA Education staff will notify bankers whose certification status is in danger of lapsing before the certification is terminated.

The certification annual renewal fee is $125. ICBA sends notice of renewal fee payments due each year to all certified bankers.

Yes, the annual renewal fee applies to each certification a banker holds. For example, a banker with two certifications would pay a $250 fee - $125 for each of the two certifications, up to a maximum of $500.

Your certification will be terminated, and you will no longer be certified. ICBA Education staff will contact bankers whose certification status is in danger of lapsing before the certification is terminated. To reinstate your certification, contact ICBA. You must enter the required number of CPE for your certification into your certification portfolio and pay any outstanding renewal fees. A certification reinstatement fee of $100 will apply.

If your certification lapsed two years ago or more, you must repeat the respective institute and retake the required exam(s).

All special requests and considerations must be submitted in writing to the Certification Board. The board is comprised of bankers, certification program instructors, attorneys, industry experts, consultants, and ICBA staff. The board meets twice per year. Contact ICBA Education by email at certification@icba.org or by telephone at (800) 422-7285 for information on how to submit your request. 

There is not a maximum number of attendees allowed to attend an institute to become certified, except for the Credit Analyst Institute. The Credit Analyst Institute limits participation to 50 students. This ensures an optimal learning environment, given the subject matter, class structure, and focus on small group work.

For banking customers, an ICBA certification is a reassuring sign of professionalism to look for when selecting a banker.  For you, that makes your ICBA certification an important selling point and marketing tool. It's an independent, third-party testament to your skills and abilities.

To date, more than 4,000 community banking professionals are certified through ICBA. ICBA certification program participants gain up-to-date regulatory and operational skills and suggestions to take home and use immediately in the following areas.

The ICBA Education staff is happy to assist you. Contact them by email certification@icba.org or by telephone (800) 422-7285.

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You worked hard to earn your credentials. Receive the recognition you deserve. ICBA Education is thrilled to announce that we can award digital badges to community bankers who have successfully completed any of our eleven certification programs.