A central feature of the chequered history of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria has been the sustained struggle to enthrone professional excellence in the banking industry in Nigeria. The history of the Institute dates back to November 28, 1963 when one hundred and twenty four bankers assembled at Randle Hall, Surulere and consequently passed a resolution for the establishment of the Local Centre of the Institute of Bankers, London, in Nigeria with the mandate of promoting banking education in Nigeria and esprit-de-corps among professional bankers. Thirteen (13) years after being successfully run as a local center and having gained considerable administrative experience and recorded significant success in training and educating its members, the Institute was registered in 1976 as the Nigerian Institute of Bankers, a company limited by guarantee. But it was not until 1977 that it became operational and autonomous. The metamorphosis of the Local Centre into the Nigerian Institute of Bankers represents a story of particular worth in that the attainment of this autonomous status was a fulfillment of a dream long conceived.