Australian regulatory body to investigate risk management controls at NAB

The Australia Prudential Regulatory Authority (APRA) is launching an investigation into the risk management controls at National Australia Bank’s (NAB) treasury division. This follows the bank's announcement on Tuesday that it faces losses of up to A$180 million relating to unauthorised trading in foreign exchange options.

As part of the investigation, APRA will look into the trading activities that caused the losses and whether the bank’s existing escalation procedures were effective. The Australian financial services industry watchdog will also review the NAB treasury’s front and back offices, and weaknesses in the design and implementation of its internal control systems, including market risk management.

Ross Jones, deputy chairman at APRA, said the review was standard regulatory practice in cases of this nature. “From a prudential perspective, APRA has to ensure that any breakdown of controls and processes in this instance has been properly identified and that appropriate action has been taken by the institution in question to rectify the matter,” he said.

In the short term, APRA will also specifically review the risk management practices of authorised deposit-taking institutions (ADIs) with treasury functions. “APRA is in constant dialogue with the ADIs it regulates and does not have any specific concerns about individual institutions or the industry in general,” said Jones. “However, both APRA and the industry recognise the importance of reassuring the community and the industry review is part of that process.”