Credit Union Supervisory Commentary Published
12 March 2018
Press Release
- Report on the findings of on-site inspections of credit unions.
- Some evidence of improvements in corporate governance, however overall a concerning number of governance and operational risks still need to be addressed.
- Governance, risk management and operational capability are essential foundations for significant business model development.
Credit Union Prism Supervisory Commentary- March 2018 (PDF 703.07KB)
The Central Bank of Ireland today
releases a report which analyses the issues identified in risk mitigation
programmes (RMPs) issued to credit unions between January and October 2017
following on-site engagements.
The Central Bank’s risk-based framework
for the supervision of regulated firms (PRISM) has applied to credit unions
since 2012. Through supervisory engagement, credit unions
are required to manage risks in a systematic and structured fashion. Credit
unions that effectively implement RMPs are best positioned to undertake
business model development to ensure future sustainability.
Since 2012, close to 700 on-site engagements took
place in credit unions. The risk areas covered include strategy and business
model, governance, risk management and operational risks. The report analyses the
955 individual risk issues, sets out evidence-based findings on key risk areas
and related supervisory expectations for credit unions. It can support credit union boards and
management teams in developing and embedding their governance, risk management
and operational frameworks.
Registrar
of Credit Unions Patrick Casey said:
“Governance, risk management and operational
capabilities are a credit union’s core foundations. Through supervisory engagement,
credit unions are required to manage risks in a systematic and structured
fashion. Our goal is to ensure all credit unions have an appropriate risk
governance culture with a strong awareness and understanding of the impact of
unmanaged risk.
It is now timely to publish commentary on the
frequency and nature of risks identified in on-site engagements. Whilst
governance standards have improved across the sector, governance remains one of
the key risk areas for credit unions. It is concerning that over 60% of
individual risks identified during on-site engagements relate to governance or
operational risks.
For many credit unions attention has now turned to
business model development. In considering any new business initiatives, it is
important that each credit union works within its own risk appetite and
tolerances and its operational capabilities. Strengthening of core foundations
is critical to credit unions in considering new business initiatives.
Notes