About this Course

Banks like other organisations face a wide range of uncertain internal and external factors that may affect achievement of their objectives—whether they are strategic, operational, or financial. The effect of this uncertainty on their objectives can be a positive risk (opportunities) or a negative risk (threats). Risk management focuses on identifying threats and opportunities, while internal control helps counter threats and take advantage of opportunities.

Risk management lies at the heart of any financial institution and it is not just the specialist teams that have responsibility for managing risk – everyone has a role to play. There are a wide range of risk faced by a financial institution, from credit and financial risk to operational and regulatory risk. When end-to-end credit risk activities are prudently assessed, monitored and controlled the shareholders and customers benefit. However, flaws in credit risk management strategy and practice is the leading cause of bank failure. For decades, competent credit professionals have concentrated most of their efforts on prudently approving loans and carefully monitoring loan performance which relies heavily on trailing indicators of credit quality.

Proper risk management and internal control help organizations understand the risks they are exposed to, put controls in place to counter threats, and effectively pursue their objectives. They are therefore an important aspect of an organization’s governance, management, and operations.