Specialty Certification

Certified Capital Markets Examiner (CCME) 

Candidates for the CCME credential must provide evidence of the following:

  • Completion of a minimum of five (5) years of on-the-job service and training as an examiner, examiner-in-charge, or review examiner. Equivalent industry experience may be substituted on a case-by-case basis.
  • Satisfactory completion of two or more of the following course offerings or an equivalent*:
    • CSBS Capital Markets Examiner Training
    • FFIEC Capital Markets Conference (both the general and advanced versions are required in order to qualify as a single offering)
    • CFA Institute's Charterholder and/or Global Association of Risk Professional's Financial Risk Manager study programs
    • Approved corporate training course, either professional or University-based, with a capital market-focused curriculum and which comprises at least 28 hours of classroom training*
      *Equivalent and/or corporate training options should be pre-approved by CSBS certification staff before beginning the application process.

Supervisor Ratings & Narrative Assessment

A minimum rating of "meets expectations" and a detailed narrative assessment justifying the rating, indicating successful job performance and mastery of appropriate job-related skills, is required. When adjudicating a certification application, a high degree of reliance is placed on the narrative assessment for each competency. For that reason, the individual providing ratings and narrative assessment for an application should be familiar with the applicant's experience, performance, and skills/abilities, and should be confident that the applicant meets all the requirements.

The attestation form addresses the following competencies:

TECHNICAL - Provides effective leadership and organization to the examination process by:

  • Effectively following established examination procedures to collect and analyze data
  • Effectively reviewing reports of examination for accuracy, content, conclusions, and proper grammar
  • Effectively evaluating and adjusting scope of examination as required

CONCEPTUAL - Provides effective and accurate evaluation of how a financial institution manages the risk of common capital market activities, including raising capital and managing the investment portfolio.  A candidate must be able to effectively:

  • Assess a financial institution’s earnings and market risk exposure to interest rate risk positions
  • Assess a financial institution's derivatives and asset loans, mortgage "hedging" and servicing rights
  • Evaluate a financial institution’s management of liquidity risk
  • Assess the effectiveness of a financial institution’s asset/liability management function
  • Review progressively larger and more complex bank balance sheets
  • Review banks with stressed CAMELS ratings with liquidity, market risk, or investment portfolio issues
  • Assess a financial institution’s ability to accurately conduct stress tests, including Dodd-Frank Act Stress Test and/or Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review
  • Possess a working knowledge of the economy, financial markets, and how developments can affect banks (i.e., Federal actions, yield curve, interest rates, domestic and global economic growth, asset classes and risk profiles)
  • Provide leadership role when working with federal counterparts during a focused capital market examination
  • Develop correct conclusions from collected data

LEGAL/COMPLIANCE - Effectively demonstrates and applies knowledge of policies, procedures, laws, rules and regulation.

HUMAN RELATIONS

  • Effectively conducts meetings with management and the boards of directors of financial institutions
  • Effectively coordinates examination planning and execution with other state and federal supervisory authorities

ORAL AND WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS

  • Effectively and clearly communicates assignments to assisting personnel
  • Effectively and clearly communicates with financial institution personnel to obtain information
  • Effectively and clearly communicates examination findings to financial institution and supervisory personnel
  • Effectively prepares written comments which are accurate, grammatically correct, logically arranged, and factually support any conclusions drawn

CONTINUING EDUCATION / EQUIVALENT CERTIFICATION

In order to maintain the CCME credential, the successful applicant is required to submit a minimum of forty (40)* continuing education hours (CEHs) over the three-year term of certification. Attendance at least once during the term at the FFIEC Capital Markets Specialists Conference is required. This Conference is approved for eighteen (18) CEHs. The Certification Committee encourages credential holders to attend in-house capital markets training to acquire the remaining twenty-two (22) hours (see requirements in next paragraph) or by completion of the following training options or an acceptable equivalent:

  • Additional attendance at the FFIEC Capital Markets Specialists Conference
  • FDIC Asset Liability Management School
  • Approved university undergraduate or certificate program
  • Approved corporate training course

Banking department staff and/or federal counterparty in-house training will be accepted for continuing education credit. The person(s) responsible for conducting and/or developing the training program must hold the CCME designation or equivalent professional credentials.

University and/or corporate training courses and seminars will be approved for continuing education purposes when it is provided by a nationally recognized training center and depending upon the nature and content of the course. Evidence regarding applicability of course content to capital markets regulation, along with the length of the seminar, must be provided to obtain credit when applying for recertification.

Forty (40) CEHs will be awarded for each approved capital markets-related certification received or renewed during the three-year certification term [e.g., GARP’s Financial Risk Manager (FRM), PRMIA’s Professional Risk Manager (PRM), and CFA Institute's Charterholder]. Additional certifications should be pre-approved by CSBS staff before placing any reliance on their applicability to continuing education requirements.

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*Revised 7/20/2021