It is a well-worn phrase “we need to do more with less”! Or in other words, can we ensure that more than one task we have to do in our day jobs can be incorporated in a single effort to ‘gain efficiencies’ or, in real speak, ultimately save money ? So I thought I would look at a typical AML and typical Trade Credit policy and see just how different or similar they were. Now, I do not profess to be a compliance officer nor have I had the stress of being a CFO so I will accept that the devil is always in the detail. However, here are just a few areas I thought seemed to have a very real sense of similarity. Here are just five examples.

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The Board of Directors of the Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena has appointed UBS and Citigroup as financial advisers for the definition, structuring and execution of the mitigating actions of the Capital Plan, as well as to explore all strategic alternatives for the Bank. Continue reading…

Just before the European Central Bank (ECB) takes over the regulation of the 123 big banks in Europe on November 4th, the European Banking Authority (EBA) publishes the results of the EU-wide stress test. The purpose of the stress test is to test how healthy banks are, how is the resilience of the EU-banks at adverse economic developments. The EU-wide stress test is coordinated by the EBA and carried out in cooperation with the European Central Bank (ECB), the European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB), the European Commission (EC) and the Competent Authorities (CAs) from all relevant national jurisdictions. Continue reading…

by Marijke van Hooren

The costs of financial data, and more precisely poor data, have become a burning industry issue. Data environments are very large and complex. And when financial data errors appear on entry at a firm, they can be easily propagated elsewhere in that company.

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by Simon Wicks

The drive to deliver faster payments processing across multiple global markets, coupled with the need to increase efficiencies and reduce costs, has become the Holy Grail for many banks keen to ensure they effectively meet client needs and retain their competitive position. However, balancing these desires with the technical challenges and emerging risks in a 24/7 world, can prove extremely difficult.

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by Jérôme Bryssinck

The agency responsible for combating carousel fraud in Belgium is the Special Tax Inspectorate (ISI), a division of Belgium’s Federal Public Service Finance. Yannic Hulot, ISI Director, recently explained how carousel fraud has been nearly eradicated in Belgium – and how a similar system could be implemented across Europe to get rid of VAT carousel fraud in the broader region.

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by Melvyn Morrison

Nico Zwikker is the former Head of Compliance at the ABN Amro Group. He started his career as a lawyer at the Amsterdam Bar and went on to the banking industry where he has been active during the past 25 years. Zwikker has previously also held a number of senior positions, including working as a lawyer and as a risk manager. His extensive experience in compliance, reputation and regulatory risk management encompasses a wide range of business risk profiles. During the course of his career, Nico has embarked on a stakeholder management approach in dealing with regulators (including national regulators and a significant number of foreign regulators), and he is fully conversant with the fast-evolving regulatory banking and securities landscape.

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by Melvyn Morrison

Gino Thielemans has been focusing on cybercrime during the past twelve years as Head of Prudential IT Supervision at the National Bank of Belgium. Before joining the National Bank, Thielemans was an IT auditor at the CBFA. He also previously worked at the CERA Bank as Head of Internal Audit for financial markets, accounting, tax and logistics, and at KPMG as an external bank auditor.

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