A fresh take on risk and valuation
This expert input addresses PSD 2 and the possibly underappreciated impact it could have on (and arguably beyond) financial services, opening many hitherto closed doors. It looks at the regulatory progress all the way from PSD 1 to PSD 2. It notes that the development of the Single Euro Payments Area – SEPA – would not have been possible without PSD 1, and an analogous paradigm shift may be expected with PSD 2. The article notes that PSD 2 may lead to the emergence of new and a separation of old services in the hands of innovative FinTech companies, though the established players still hold a very strong position to compete, if only they adjust to the new reality.
ReadThis Expert input addresses the EMIR-related requirement of keeping a variation and initial margin; more specifically, the initial Margin is the main focus of the article. It lists the advantages of using the scheduled-based approach but shows that the margin requirements using this methodology may be a bit too steep. It further examines the possibility of internal models and concludes that their development could be just too cumbersome for most. It proposes ISDA SIMM as having the advantage of simplicity together with lower (or at least more realistic) requirements. The article finishes with comparing ISDA SIMM with the sensitivity-based approach for FRTB.
ReadThis Expert input addresses the degree of preparedness of Banks for the implementation of IFRS 9 as of February 2017 based on an EBA report. In this report, the EBA has carried out a thorough examination of the different stages of the implementing process of IFRS 9, that various different institutions find themselves at, notably making a distinction between the challenges faced by bigger (generally better prepared) and smaller (generally less prepared) institutions. The input finishes with some interesting quantitative observations and a list of EBA worries as well as a list of IFRS 9 challenges that the institutions will need to address once the scramble to formally adopt the standards is complete.
ReadThis article discusses the review of the European Market Infrastructure Regulation, conducted in May 2017. It lists a brief overview of the regulatory framework to date, including RTSs (on complex trades, cleared trades, Collateral Exchange, notional amount, etc.), ITSs (on the use of LEIs, classification of collateralization, generation of UTIs, etc.) as well as updates to the official Q&A. Apart from this basic overview, the article delves deeper into the specific changes for reporting and reporting standards. It portrays four main fields that we have some reason to believe that the review is going to be concerned with, together with predictions of how these challenges will be addressed.
ReadThis Expert input focuses on the analytical credit database project of the ECB (AnaCredit). It explains this new database – which is intended to consist of a dataset with granular information on individual loans, how this dataset is aggregated in the Eurozone (and potentially beyond), what the initial limitations are and what plans the ECB may have to overcome them in the future. It shows the reporting process and timeline in which the database will be introduced. Most importantly, it describes three building blocks that any institution needs to adopt in order to make sure that they are successfully compliant.
ReadThis Expert input conducts a thorough examination of the Principles for Effective Risk Data Aggregation and Risk Reporting that were primarily intended for Global Systemically Important Institutions but are of great interest to all. It explains the intuition behind BCBS 239 and why it is important for other institutions than G-SIB’s. It provides a broad overview of all 14 principles, and their meaning for institutions as well as supervisors. It looks at the greatest challenges in the implementation of BCBS 239 (traditionally data quality, but technical issues too) and offers four key suggestions for successful compliance.
ReadThis expert input follows the release of a discussion paper on the use of big data by financial institutions published by the Joint Committee of the European Supervisory Authorities. It examines the general data-related regulatory framework that financial institutions are facing or will face in the future, all the way from very general requirements (GDPR) to requirements specific to financial services (EMIR & MiFID II). The paper also discusses the potential uses of big data by financial institutions and how it would influence the operations of those institutions, their potential costs and benefits. The expert input concludes with our evaluation of the possibilities arising from big data as well as our projection of the regulatory future regarding this topic.
ReadThis Expert input explains in detail all the intricacies surrounding 2016 EIOPA insurance stress test. Taking the form of questions and answers, it explains the scope and the purpose behind stress testing, the scenarios that were examined and the way their impact was measured. The results are glossed over. We also commit to putting forth our opinion on what we think about the validity of the assumptions, just how representative the stress test may actually be and for whom the results may provide useful intuition, and for whom they may be less than relevant. Lastly, we provide our estimates on what actions the regulators are going to take in reaction to this stress test.
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