Summary

In today's complex and ever-changing financial landscape, banks and financial institutions face unprecedented challenges in managing risks. From market risk to credit risk, climate risk and beyond, the risk landscape has expanded. At CRISIL we have spent two decades collaborating with global financial giants, offering tailored risk solutions. Our expertise, powered by cutting-edge analytics and technology, empowers clients to navigate regulatory hurdles, mitigate financial risk, make informed decisions, and safeguard their reputation.

CRISIL participated as a panel sponsor at the prestigious Asia Risk Congress 2023 held in Singapore, a flagship event organized by Asia Risk (Infopro Digital/Risk.net) in the APAC region. The event presented an exclusive platform to connect with key decision makers in risk management from prominent financial institutions. Our leader Nageswara Ganduri, contributed to a panel discussion themed "Risk Inventory: Lessons Learned in 2023," sharing insights alongside industry leaders from Standard Chartered Bank, UBS, and Silverdale. In addition, CRISIL effectively showcased its Risk Management capabilities during the event, with our sales leader, Jose Ordonez, leading engaging networking discussions.

Here are Key takeaways from the panel discussion:

• In our interactions, the majority of the participants acknowledged the growing regulatory focus on #ClimateRisk within the region and elaborated on their organisations’ efforts to integrate climate risk into their ERM initiatives; CRISIL believes climate risk will remain a key regulatory focus not only within the region but also globally. In the long run, climate risk will become increasingly integrated into BAU modelling and traditional stress testing, including ICAAP.
  
• Risk and technology transformation has emerged as a focal point and priority within the region, particularly for global banks. Numerous banks discussed their transformation initiatives encompassing financial technology, cloud computing, #AI and automation.
• Increased regulatory efforts and technological advancements have prompted global banks to implement risk and technology transformation programmes. Nevertheless, the region, with its diverse economies, portfolios, and levels of technological advancements, poses distinct challenges in data, technology and regulatory transformation for global banks.
• For a successful transformation, banks should consider not only cost and profitability but also long-term sustainability and seamless adoption.
• The implementation of #Basel regulations, namely #FRTB, has experienced delays in many jurisdictions across the region. That said, most banks are preparing for either the simplified standard approach or the standard approach. 
• The adoption and implementation timelines of FRTB regulations in the region are fragmented. The effects of FRTB rules will also vary for each bank based on factors such as their existing portfolio, risk/ FO IT infrastructure, availability of clean reference data, and capital structure.
• Whether implementing the simplified standard approach or the standard approach, banks in this region will continue to grapple with issues such as sourcing of quality data and IT infrastructure.
• For instance, obtaining clean reference data for APAC securities is more challenging than acquiring such data for the developed markets.