Finance: Wellfleet Bank

The idea of “risk” is used in many fields and industries. There has been large efforts made towards the understanding of risk. Since, risk varies so much depending on the field of study, the need for learning about it is warranted. As can be imagined, the importance of risk in a market economy is crucial. In the 1990s, JP Morgan made the Value at Risk (VaR) a central component of its work efforts (Cecilia-Nicoleta, Anne-Marie, & Carmen-Maria, 2011).

As time has shown, financial institutions undertake an abundance of uncertainty causing unpredictable risk consequences. As a result, executives instill risk management programs to assist in managing the organizations risks so they align with the company’s goals. Commonly sought goals include legal and regulatory compliance, tolerable uncertainty, survival, business continuity, earnings stability, profitability and growth, social responsibility and economy of risk management operations. Through the implementations of goal oriented programs, an organization can effectively minimize risk uncertainty. All organizations including financial institutions encounter risks from each risk

IntroductionLinda Best, a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) from Sarnia, Canada is the founder and sole shareholder of Best Financial Services Inc. which was established on January 1, 2001. Sarnia, the largest city in South Ontario, bordered the United States and was heavily populated with aging baby boomers and blue-collar workers. Best Financial earned its revenues mainly from blue-collar workers nearing retirement. Best financial had formed strong relationships with many clients throughout Sarnia and managed over 1000 financial plans allowing a steady revenue and profit growth. The key services provided by Best Financial are risk management, tax preparation and professional money management. The company’s Assets under Management were

A community bank is exposed to different types of risks. Hazard or pure risks may or may not result in loss and are, generally, insured, whereas, financial risks are external threats with the potential to affect the bank’s objectives. For the CRO, managing various types of risks is essential for the overall profitability of the bank. To minimize the effect of hazard and financial risks, the CRO will implement ERM or traditional risk management processes to create a program for risk management.

Because of rapid economic growth in XXX over the past years has increased the fear of major business failure, risk has become an overwhelmingly dominant business topic. As a result, top managers are now focusing on risk management in their companies. As each business entity struggles with its own set of needs and circumstances, the need and flexibility to address this continuously changing and volatile economic environment, would be extremely challenging and fulfilling to me.

RBC engages a strong risk culture, with an understanding of risk awareness and responsibility. They use several methods to manage and alleviate their vulnerability to different types of risk. This bank’s risk-management process includes in-depth risk measurement, risk control, and risk governance, with setting the right risk culture at the top with their Board of Directors through their “Three Lines of Defence Model ,” (See Exhibit 4).

Since the onset of the financial crisis 2008, the sovereign debt crisis in western economies and the new financial regulation with Basel III coming up, the financial industry faces the challenge of reinventing itself. The ring-fence for Commercial and Investment Banking, and new economic and regulatory capital requirements will determine the kinds of products banks will be able to distribute. It will have a huge impact in the Investment Banking business, which will suffer tough regulation and supervisory procedures. At the same time, credit risk models will be reviewed because they have failed to predict the crisis of 2008. The current financial and economic crisis doesn’t have any precedent in the past.

CIBC has focused its core business on retail and business banking, wealth management, and whole sale banking. They have shown a proven track record of providing there customers with financial services and advice through a group upwards of 1100 branches worldwide. Strategies CIBC has portrayed is to continually find new ways to enhance the experience of the client and to stimulate safe revenue growth. CIBC has put emphases on creating deep meaningful relationships with all clients, constantly trying new ways to improve service and sales prospects and to create relationships with new clients while retaining existing clients for a long period of time (CIBC).

Collier (2009) claims that the fundamental role of the Board of the directors in a company is to apply risk management and to review the performance of the organisations’ internal control procedures; these two principal processes will support the Board in the setting of the strategic targets, the transformation of the targets into real products and services, the effective business overseeing, and the realistic reporting to the external stakeholders. Apart from the Board, the author suggests that an effective risk management framework must be facilitated by a risk management group, a chief risk officer, external and internal audits, and a mature organisational culture disseminated to the line managers and employees. Under the same concept, Hampton (2009) presented a flow gram that suggests the path towards the establishment of enterprise risk management, starting from the risk recognition and ending to the standardization of a risk evaluation process, having prior involved the Board, the risk owners and the accountable staff.

Even though the Bank enjoys a great brand value in the market it was in a threat during the year 2013; this was the period when it gave employment to international employees and the Canadian employees were on the verge of losing their jobs. This did not last for a long period and the Controversy died in the market. (Tomlinson, April 8, 2013)

Potential key risks have been identified in the earlier sections of this project as this is task three of assessment number one. There are four risks that the board have particularly picked according to the level of risk and its likelihood that could affect the company. These risks include the following:

• Governance and oversight: Assessing business model and strategy changes and reinforcing the importance of sound corporate governance appropriate for the size and complexity of the individual bank. A specific focus will be on determining the adequacy of strategic, capital, and succession planning. Examiners will assess whether the plan is appropriate in light of the risks in new products or services. If applicable, examiners will assess the bank’s merger and acquisition processes and procedures.

Market risk is the risk associated with an investors day to day investments, that are affected by constant fluctuations in the markets. With investment banking, a banks reputation is a critical in its success, reputational risk describes the trustworthiness of a business. A firm with a poor reputation will not get as much business, meaning a bad reputation results in a loss in revenue. Concentration Risk is the risk showing the spread of a banks’ accounts to various debtors to whom the bank has lent to. The Basel II accord stated that ‘operational risk is the risk of loss resulting from inadequate or failed internal processes, people and systems, or from external events’. This risk covers the very wade basis of a company’s operations, there are many different factors involved here: people, employees actions and company processes.

During the volatile and instable period, the risk was obviously brought to a new level. Morgan’s Private Bank kept their eyes open all the time. I concluded two main aspects.

Risk management is an activity which integrates recognition of risk, risk assessment, developing strategies to manage it, and mitigation of risk using managerial resources. Some traditional risk managements are focused on risks stemming from physical or legal causes (e.g. natural disasters or fires, accidents, death). Financial risk management, on the other hand, focuses on risks that can be managed using traded financial instruments. Objective of risk management is