The Financial Services Institute of Australia is getting a good response to its Financial Services Professional credential program, which it launched in June last year, with the Big Four banks plus Macquarie Group signing up to have candidates in the first intake.Fifteen bankers from private banking operations at the five institutions were admitted to the FSP program in March and another 20 will follow later this year.In October, Finsia will launch the next stage of the FSP program, when it admits between 30 and 50 business bankers into the program. Candidates for the business banking part of the program will come from a wider range of institutions, including Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, Suncorp and Bank of Queensland.Finsia's chief executive, Russell Thomas, said that at the outset the focus of the program would be on banking because the banking sector has been short on credentials.Over time, the program will be expanded to cover all areas of the financial services industry.Thomas, who has been with Finsia since 2003, took over as CEO in May, following the departure of Martin Fahy. The FSP designation is a capability-based credential, rather than education-based. To gain an FSP designation, candidates have to submit both a portfolio and testimony from their employer, peers and colleagues. They then sit an admission interview before a panel of senior industry practitioners. The process takes over a year, during which time applicants work with a mentor.At the time of the launch of FSP last year, Fahy said: "What we are aiming to do over the next five to 10 years is to bring the strong credentialing of law, medicine and other professions to this industry. We don't have that now. By having applicants work with mentors our aim is to change behaviour."Fahy said the reason for having the credential based on capability and peer review rather that a course of study was that "educational qualification signals potential. It is necessary but it is not sufficient. FSP will signal capability."Since selling its post-graduate education business in 2007, Finsia has been developing a range of member services. It has a mentoring service, which involves senior industry professionals mentoring younger members.Thomas is working on the next development, which is a package of entry-level induction and accreditation services. "We want to create a gateway from university studies into the profession and our association."One reason for focusing on the entry into the profession is that the Australian Securities and Investments Commission is making changes to its licensing regime for financial planners, including moving to a national examination. Finsia sees a role for itself in that change.Thomas said: "The current RG 146 regime (ASIC's regulatory guide to the training of financial product advisers) has been a race to the bottom. There are too many education providers in that market, and different standards."Our focus in this area will be on helping people prepare for work in the profession, with a proprietary induction program."