Following the successful implementation of its high standard online exam, launched last year, to certify Court Banking Experts in Dubai and Northern Emirates courts, The UAE Banks Federation (UBF) successfully raised the bar for Court Banking Experts. The qualification process was introduced in full collaboration with the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Dubai Courts, and Ministry of Justice (MOJ), and was meant to enhance the efficiency of the Court Banking Experts
UBF achieved a qualitative leap in terms of ensuring the adoption of the best talent, as due to its high standard design, the average pass rate for the exam has been low, thus guaranteeing only those of the highest calibre in banking knowledge to become qualified Court Banking Experts. The exam is divided into two main parts: a written multiple-choice exam followed by a face to face interview, to ensure that only those who are qualified are accepted.
A Court Banking expert is a professionally qualified person who can be called upon by a judge to provide financial expertise and analysis in court cases, mainly in relation to banking and financial complex matters. To improve the standard of these experts, UBF consulted with the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), and Dubai and Northern Emirates courts, to construct the end to end qualification process.
Following this consultation and based on its analysis, the Ministry of Justice formulated a large number of questions that comprehensively covers all areas of the banking industry. UBF then developed the online exam, which is professionally based on a highly complicated algorithm that randomly selects a set of equal difficult questions for the examinees, in order to ensure fairness and standardization. The fully automated online exam was launched in early 2018 and is managed by the Department of Finance at the American University of Sharjah. It is the only exam in the UAE that certifies Court Banking experts at such required high standard.
Applicants that pass the exam are still required to sit before a panel of oversight professionals comprising several authorities, including The Central Bank of the UAE, Courts/Ministry of Justice, and UAE Banks Federation, who collectively give a second score to the applicant which is then added to the final exam score for a final pass or fail result.
H.E AbdulAziz Al Ghurair, Chairman of UAE Banks Federation, said: “Having a robust legal framework with world-class Court Banking Experts is essential to the integrity of the banking sector and the public interest. This online exam has effectively improved the quality of this framework, creating a generation of recognized, high calibre legal banking professionals on UAE soil. The success of this initiative is a significant step towards ensuring all banking disputes are resolved fairly and swiftly, and underpins our commitment to promoting trust across the industry.”
A candidate who wishes to be accredited must first contact the courts to ensure the fulfilment of the initial screening criteria, such as having a relevant educational degree, a number of years of experience needed, and market exposure. Then they need to take the multiple-choice exam and answer questions against a vigorous set of criteria established by UBF, CBUAE and MoJ. If the candidate passes, they will then sit for a face to face interview before a panel of senior representatives from UBF, CBUAE, and MoJ, who will assess their knowledge and expertise.
H.E AbdulAziz added: “The principles we used to develop this exam provide a benchmark for quality, and are being used to raise the professional standards in other areas of the UAE banking sector. In the coming months and years, we expect to see continuous improvement and fundamental shifts in the standards of compliance, technology and cybersecurity, with the mission to create one of the healthiest and strongest banking sectors in the world.”
Established in 1982, the UAE Banks Federation is a professional representative body comprising 52-member banks operating in the UAE. The Federation advocates all banks' interests, and enhances cooperation and coordination among them, to promote and upgrade the UAE's banking sector for the benefit of the sector, its customers, and the national economy. The UAE Banks Federation's mission and objectives are focused on representing its member banks and defending their interests and rights. The federation provides a platform for cooperation and exchange of ideas and opinions among member banks and plays a major role in raising public awareness around the beneficial role and distinctive financial, economic and social contribution of the banks to the UAE. The Federation has an Advisory Council that is consisted of 28 Bank CEOs which oversees the implementation of the policies, follows up on UBF's activities and makes necessary decisions by the General Secretariat of the Union and its 20 specialized technical committees who discuss all relevant banking issues.
