Feature
When is best practice good enough?
Risk analysis
Betting on principal finance
Cover story
US regulators seek public comment on proposed treatment of expected and unexpected losses under Basel II
US regulators are seeking public comment on proposed changes to the treatment of expected and unexpected losses in the internal ratings-based approach of credit risk measurement.
Glass-Steagall and Dingell?
Congressman John D. Dingell, the indefatigable Democrat from Michigan, has embarked on a crusade against the practice of 'tying' – where banks use loans to secure further business.
S&P versus Basel II: A fragile accord
By publicly casting doubt over aspects of the Basel II Accord's methodology, rating agency Standard & Poor's is voicing concerns shared by many in the banking industry. Joanne Hart asks how this dispute may affect bondholders and the market in general.
Survey spotlights doubts on Basel II
The proposed operational risk charge remains the single most controversial aspect of Basel II, the new Accord on bank regulatory capital, according to a survey jointly conducted by Ernst & Young and Risk.
CP3 comments: Any last words?
The comments elicited by the Basel Committee's third consultative paper (CP3) show just how little consensus exists between regulators and banks on the Basel II capital Accord. Dwight Cass highlights some of the telling comments.
Bill of rights
A group of 25 institutional investors have released a manifesto outlining their aims for a better world for bondholders. Stronger covenants, greater transparency and improved ratings practices are amongst their demands.
Managed Funds Association appoints chairman
The Managed Funds Association, the leading US lobby group for the hedge fund business, has appointed Adam Cooper from Citadel Investment Group as its new chairman.
Operational risk is main cause of bank failures, says FDIC
Operational risk continues to be the root cause of bank failures, according to the Division of Resolutions and Receiverships at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), based in Washington DC.
Banks should standardise CDS indexes, says credit derivatives panel
Investment banks should be pushing for standardisation in credit default swaps (CDS) indexes, agreed a panel of credit derivatives experts at Risk ’s Credit Risk Summit Europe 2003 in London.
Asset manager technology hinders op risk management
Less than 40% of global asset managers believe they have the necessary technology to manage operational risk and automation issues effectively, according to a survey released last week.
Sponsor's article > Statistical process control
Too often, finance professionals manifest a smug sense of superiority towards their peers in manufacturing. In this third column in a series, David Rowe argues that when it comes to operational risk management, the manufacturing sector has much to teach…
Black Thursday
The costs of the recent power outage in large parts of northeast USA and Canada range from $6 billion to $10 billion. Hardeep Dhillon looks at the consequences of the blackout and analyzes the impact on the utility and insurance industries.
'A good deal for regulators and banks'
Paul Kupiec's article in the August issue of Risk – Does CP3 get it right? – raised a number of concerns about the application of Basel II to retail portfolios.
Weasel parade
Investment bank CIBC has been found guilty of multiple counts of deception in underwriting a bond deal for cosmetics company Renaissance. Linda Corman reports on the evidence that emerged from the court case.
What price regulatory compliance?
The US banking industry has been inundated with a set of mandatory changes such as Basel II, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the Patriot Act, which, responded to individually, represent a significant portion of an organisation's change budget. Dai Bedford,…
Geopolitical futures: The politics of betting
Using markets to forecast political events may not be as strange an idea as it seemed in July, when a terrorism futures scheme collapsed. But there is still scepticism as to whether such an approach would be ethical or effective.
Industry Slips on Phase One of BCP Tests
NEW YORK - The U.S. securities industry will wind down Phase 1 of industry-wide business continuity planning (BCP) tests later than expected and will begin Phase 2 in the third quarter of next year, confirm officials who are taking a lead role in the…
McDonough clarifies PCAOB mission brief to US Congress
WASHINGTON, DC - With final rulings on inspection of US public accounting firms imminent and reviews of registration applications underway, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) has begun the process of enforcing accounting mandates of…
Investors and auditors differ on Sarbanes-Oxley's effectiveness
WASHINGTON, DC - Institutional investors and auditors remain at odds over how effective the Sarbanes-Oxley Act has been so far, with the former advocating a broader scope for the act and the latter warning that it may have already gone too far.
Measuring the value of clearing
Central clearing houses offer major advantages to the electricity trading industry, says UK Power Exchange’s Paul Danielsen. He sets out a practical example to demonstrate how UK power firms can benefit from clearing
The politics of betting
Using markets to forecast political events may not be as strange an idea as it seemed in July, when a terrorism futures scheme collapsed. But there is still scepticism as to whether such an approach would be ethical or effective. By Maria Kielmas