MEIRA, BIBF to roll out certified Investors Relations Programme

Bahrain Institute of Banking & Finance (“BIBF”) and Middle East Investor Relations Association (“MEIRA”) in presence of head of MEIRA Bahrain Chapter, have signed agreement to roll-out the Certified Investors Relations Program (‘CIRO’) in Bahrain under the Investment Academy umbrella.

The CIRO program has been launched as a joint initiative between Bahrain Bourse (BHB), MEIRA, and the BIBF.

The signing ceremony took place at Bahrain Bourse premises and it was followed by a seminar attended by representatives from local listed companies who had the opportunity to discuss the importance of the CIRO certification within their line of work.

The CIRO program aims to offer professional talent a unique opportunity to acquire certification within IR, which is increasingly becoming an important function within listed companies. The CIRO program will be fully supported by Tamkeen (i.e. the Labour Fund) under their Training & Wage Support program.

John Gollifer, General Manager of MEIRA commented stating: “The CIRO qualification offers a timely and useful international benchmark in the Middle East when regional capital markets are opening up and becoming of greater interest to investors around the world. This welcome initiative demonstrates how collaboration between like-minded partners can deliver professional development opportunities to the IR practitioners in the Kingdom of Bahrain market.”

The BIBF’s Director, Dr. Ahmed Al-Shaikh commented: “We are pleased to continue our partnership with Bahrain Bourse, this time to launch the Certified Investor Relations Programme under the Investment Academy umbrella, to further advance the Investor Relations landscape in the Kingdom, given its success rate, high returns and market value. He also added, “The CIRO programme allows IR professionals to demonstrate their knowledge of the financial and market environment, the regulatory and reporting requirements for listed companies and their sound understanding of the principles of investor relations, which will enable them to operate competently and safely.

Marwa Al-Maskati, Director of Marketing & Business Development and MEIRA – Bahrain Chapter Head stated: “MEIRA-Bahrain Chapter aims to develop and implement best practices in investor relations across listed companies given the growing expectations of sophisticated investor base. Hence, the CIRO program has been rolled out under the Investment Academy to nurture talented professionals within the growing IR field.”

The CIRO program is an internationally recognised certification program for the investor relations profession. In the Middle East, the program is organised by the Middle East Investor Relations Association (MEIRA), in partnership with the UK IR Society (UKIRS) and delivered by the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF) in the Kingdom of Bahrain. A three-day intensive training course of a total of 20 hours, is followed by a 60-minute exam.

The Certificate in Investor Relations is regarded as a valuable benchmark for IR professions. Obtaining the Certificate in IR would enable delegates to obtain international recognition as a qualified IR practitioner, demonstrates expertise and competence in IR field, and enhances career development within IR.

The program focuses on six key topics: principles & practices of investor relations, global financial markets, companies & regulation, regulatory environment, accounting, valuation & investment principles, effective IR in practice. To date, there are more than 1,600 CIRO holders globally and 50 CIRO holders in the Middle East region, making it one of the leading IR qualifications on a global basis.

It is worth noting that Bahrain Bourse and the Middle East Investor Relations Association (MEIRA) has officially launched the MEIRA chapter in Bahrain during April 2019 with the aim of developing and enhancing best practices in Investor Relations (IR) across the Kingdom of Bahrain.