May 5th, 2009 by admin
As Shakespeare’s LORD POLONIUS advises us in Hamlet:
“Neither a borrower nor a lender be;
For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry”
‘Bubbles, borrowers and lenders’. Where do the regulators and our government stand in all of this gloom and doom? Our PM Gordon is spreading the word that this recession is nothing to do with him and that it was just a case of ‘I just happened to be standing in the wrong spot when the s**t hit the fan’. But is that right? Surely, there is a responsibility angle here. It happened on his watch. Can Gordon just plead he wasn’t responsible, and that it’s an international problem? Surely governments have the responsibility to set up and monitor regulators who in turn are there to protect the consumer. Is it OK to let people borrow to the max one moment, and then let us in on their little secret that we, our children and our children’s children will spend the rest of their lives paying for the mistake of not taking the responsibility to monitor mountainous levels of debt?
There will be few people in football that shed a tear at the decision to dock Southampton Football Club (SFC) ten points for its failure to balance its books. Just as there were few tears shed about Lehman’s – all bankers are greedy, so it serves them right. Right?
Continue reading ‘Neither a borrower nor a lender be’
April 3rd, 2009 by admin
Many people expected the meeting of the G20 group of countries to shake up the financial regulatory landscape, commentators are now reviewing what plans were agreed. One agreed action of the summit seems to be that central banks and regulators are to draw up detailed plans for dealing with large international banks and the affect, in the event of any future collapse, on the global economy. But what does this mean in terms of global regulation?
The Financial Stability Board which co-ordinates the actions of regulators round the world has already said that watchdogs would meet more regularly to discuss how they would tackle a future crisis at a large multinational bank that could affect the global economy. So far they have stayed clear of announcing a global regulator but the requirement for global systems has never been more crucial.
Continue reading ‘Thoughts from FRSGlobal after the G20′
March 31st, 2009 by admin
A fundamental redesign of macro- and micro-prudential supervision in Europe, the United States and in Asia Pacific is being proposed. The hard bargaining has started and at the G20 in London this week we will see this topic revisited time and again.
EU government leaders are expected to endorse a major programme of financial reform, including a potentially far-reaching new regime for regulation and supervision across Europe. It is expected that any proposed framework will involve setting up new overarching EU bodies to conduct what is now, in the new parlance, called macro-prudential supervision (concerned with financial system stability), and micro-prudential supervision (of individual firms), and the closer linking of the two.
Continue reading ‘FRSGlobal launches TNG - The Next Generation.’
March 19th, 2009 by admin
Reading the Sundays over a cup of coffee I was struck by what some are calling the new British disease. In the last week we have been humiliated in the cricket, football and rugby – all games we introduced to the world. This begs the question, did we also introduce the world to its current regulatory environment, or should I say malaise? Certainly regulators and regulation seem to be all over the business pages and the Brits are lying at the heart of the debate.
One item that drew my attention was the coverage awarded to Lord Burns, the former Treasury permanent secretary, who has now decided to criticise the banking regulation that he helped to introduce when Labour came to power in 1997. Burns commented that the tripartite structure covering the Bank of England, the Treasury and the FSA, do not properly overlap – meaning that weak British banking models were not spotted quickly enough. I wonder whose fault that was? He also said the system was insufficiently transparent and in the initial stages of the crisis led to uncertainty of responsibility. I firmly believe that it is not just about the transparency of regulation but the reports that the regulators insist upon. These reports must be made easier for people to understand. Has anyone read the FSA’s latest attempt to report liquidity? It runs long and even if the average bank board member were to read it, I doubt they would understand it.
Continue reading ‘Burns lights a fire under banking regulation’
September 22nd, 2008 by admin
The ructions on the world financial markets may seem remote from people’s everyday working lives, but, the impact will undoubtedly prove to be severe. Banks serve an essential purpose. They are the intermediary by which capital can be allocated to productive use and financial gain. However, for the present, banks appear to have forfeited the public trust upon which they depend by gambling with investors’ money
Perhaps this will prove to be a squall rather than the perfect storm The Times refers to. The problem is, if the public loses confidence in the integrity of the financial system, what happens next?
Continue reading ‘Well, what an astonishing week!’
August 21st, 2008 by admin
The Software as a Service (SaaS) model promises to transform the business of software development at FRSGlobal by moving from on-premises deployment of software to providing globally on-demand functionality via the Internet. It brings many benefits to the table, not the least of which includes reduced IT costs, adaptability and a faster way to respond to regulatory or market changes. This model of software delivery has the potential of benefiting both FRSGlobal as well as our customers, providing that it is used effectively. SaaS needs to provide value-add to our customers and partners, while protecting the value they currently enjoy from the more traditional development methodology.
Continue reading ‘Software as a Service for Financial & Regulatory Reporting’
March 19th, 2008 by admin
Some thoughts from an airport lounge as I head for another one of our offices and a meeting with clients
On a personal level the challenges of carrying the right clothes are paramount. Two weeks ago I was in the humid heat of torrential downpours in Singapore and this week I was slipping and sliding (literally as I went base over apex ) in the freezing temperatures of Montreal
However, with oil hitting $110 a barrel, gold at $1,000 an ounce, the dollar in free fall and central banks cutting interest rates inflationary pressures are a global problem and it has got me thinking about how we can position ourselves at FRSGlobal to help our clients. In order to monitor the effect this has for regulators and financial institutions alike FRSGlobal are addressing the issue of providing global regulatory reporting solutions. We are also, following expeditions to the Middle East, Turkey, India, Russia and China recently, expanding our coverage of the ‘E7’ - China, India, Brazil, Russia, Indonesia, Mexico and Turkey .
Continue reading ‘Thoughts from an airport lounge..’
January 23rd, 2008 by shusk
Amid a shocking string of results in the run up to Christmas 2007 there were calls for the head of George Burley manager of Southampton Football Club. Now, based on his track record at Saints, Hearts, Derby and Ipswich he is being considered seriously for the country manager role with Scotland.. Two questions: How will further change and upheaval affect Southampton’s chances of promotion to the Premier League any time soon? And how will a third manager in three years affect Scotland’s chances of qualifying for one of the world’s major tournaments?
In the world of international banking the impact of the credit crunch will probably result in a reduction in IT spending of some 20%. However, there is renewed focus on understanding what the risks are that caused the initial problem. The key objective for many banks will be the need to develop a “single view” of risk across the bank. How will these changes affect FRSGlobal the risk management company with which I am involved?
In short there is plenty of upheaval, plenty of change - the question is:
Is change always for the worst? Continue reading ‘Is change always for the worst?’
