Financial services regulation tends to be costly and unsympathetic to consumers. This book examines why that is the case and proposes and regulatory regime that would be more efficient and more responsive to consumer interests.

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A detailed road map for getting started as an independent financial consultant

Each year, thousands of people from all walks of life leave the security of their nine-to-five jobs to pursue careers as independent financial consultants. For a great many of them, the experience is financially and personally rewarding beyond their expectations. If you, too, are thinking about taking the big leap into becoming a financial consultant, but you aren't sure how to go about it, this book is for you.

How can I be sure that financial consulting is right for my personality? What kinds of training and skills do I need to succeed, and how do I get them? What special licenses or certification are required? How do I find clients and build lasting relationships with them? With the help of first-person accounts from successful financial consultants from across the country, expert Edward J. Stone provides complete answers to these and all your questions concerning:
* Acquiring and honing key skills, including the all-important "people" skills
* Organizing and structuring your business
* Indispensable software tools
* Services you can offer clients and why you should specialize
* Marketing your services, targeting clients, and building a solid core clientele
* Why you should become certified and how to go about it
* Profiling clients and drawing up formal financial plans
* Dealing with state and federal regulations
* Contracts and key legal considerations
* Surviving in a down market

This study examines the failure of the Franklin National Bank and the international banking crisis of 1974-1975. It discusses the changes in banking regulation and practice which contributed to Franklin's problems and explores how regulators in the U.S. and abroad coped with the threat to the safety and soundness of the international banking system. The study explains how the failure of the Franklin National Bank and the Herstatt Bank forced bank regulators and policy makers to address the new international nature of banking and to work together to address the dramatic changes in international financial markets. Such international cooperation to manage bank crises and to set common standards will help to prevent financial crises in the future. The book also addresses an interesting undercurrent in the Franklin Bank: the involvement of the mysterious Italian financier Michele Sindona.

This book suggests how good loans can be made to individuals and firms at the 'frontier'. This frontier is not geographic, but market based. On one side are those parts of the legitimate economy that are not usually considered creditworthy by formal financial institutions, and on the other are the generally more prosperous entities that do have access to formal finance. Good loans are loans that are repaid according to the terms agreed on when they were issued. It examines how lending at the frontier can be remunerative to commercial banks, development banks and other development finance agencies that retail credit and assume credit risk. Remunerative lending is important because most lenders, regardless of their ownership and institutional form, tend to avoid activities that are not attractive. Unremunerative lending is transitory, unstable, and not robust in the face of adversity. Credit markets function poorly when lenders are not adequately rewarded. Experience at the frontier clearly indicates that weak financial institutions do not do a good job serving society in general and firms and individuals at the frontier in particular. This book is intended for readers interested in the relationship between finance and development at the firm and household levels and in the use of credit by individuals in low-income countries.

This book demystifies the developments and defines the buzzwords in the wide open space of digitalization and finance, exploring the space of FinTech through the lens of the financial services professional and what they need to know to stay ahead. With chapters focusing on the customer interface, payments, smart contracts, workforce automation, robotics, crypto currencies and beyond, this book aims to be the go-to guide for professionals in financial services and banking on how to better understand the digitalization of their industry. The book provides an outlook of the impact digitalization will have in the daily work of a CFO/CRO and a structural influence to the financial management (including risk management) department of a bank.

The dramatic story of the last fifty years of the Speyer banking dynasty, a Jewish family of German descent, is surprisingly little known today, yet at the turn of the 20th century, Speyer was the third largest investment banking firm in the United States, behind only Morgan and Kuhn, Loeb. It had branches in London, Frankfurt and New York, and the projects it financed included the Southern Pacific Railroad, the London Underground and the infrastructure of the new Cuban republic. Later, it was the first major banking firm to finance Germany's Weimar Republic, as well as providing League of Nations loans to Hungary, Greece and Bulgaria. Yet, the firm was doomed by the nationalist passions aroused by World War I. Its English partner was denaturalised and exiled; its American partner enjoyed reduced standing because of his connection to Germany; and the Frankfurt branch closed with the coming of the Third Reich, its German partner fleeing into exile. The firm was dissolved in 1939, a surprisingly anticlimactic end to one of the great international banking companies of modern times. George W. Liebmann here tells the story of the firm and the family - shedding new light on the protagonists of a remarkable dynasty, who came undone in the dramatic years of the early 20th century.

Gail Kelly's presence reaches far beyond her own profession. The first female CEO of one of Australia's big four banks, listed by Forbes in 2010 as the eighth most powerful woman in the world, and mother of four (including triplets), Gail is celebrated as one of the finest, most innovative thinkers on leadership and workplace culture. In these personal, practical chapters, Gail shares what she has learned over her remarkable career, drawing from her personal and professional life. As a leader, she argues passionately for the importance of putting people and customers at the heart of a business; of leading with courage and generosity of spirit; and of resilience. Some of these lessons were learned at times of high pressure, and Gail takes us into her thinking as she led Westpac through the global financial crisis and the merger with St.George. But Gail's voice speaks to each of us, whatever our role in life. She explores the absolute importance of loving what you do; learning to learn; backing yourself; and, most importantly, placing your family above all things. At the heart of Gail's refreshing, authentic, integrated approach is how both individuals and companies thrive when they openly address the meaning of what they do, and understand the need to live a whole life. Live Lead Learn is the inspiring story of one of the world's most prominent businesspeople. It is also the story of a Pretoria girl who started out as a Latin teacher before making a shift to banking. Her executive career in the financial services industry spanned 35 years, equally split between the two countries she loves - South Africa and Australia. Her first role was as a teller at the Simmonds Street branch of the SA Perm in Johannesburg. Her last role was that of CEO of Westpac in Australia. Gail describes her journey as an improbable one. It is certainly a fascinating one.

Tatjana Viktorovna Nikitina gibt einen konzentrierten UEberblick uber die Aufgaben der Russischen Zentralbank und die Aktivitaten der Geschaftsbanken im umfassendsten Transformationsprozess Russlands nach der Revolution 1917. Der russischen Regierung kommt die historische Aufgabe zu, Institutionen wie die russische Zentralbank so mit gesetzlichen Regelungen auszustatten, dass die im Wettbewerb stehenden Geschaftsbanken als effektive Institutionen fur Stabilitat, Wachstum und gerechte Verteilung in Russland fungieren. Die Autorin schliesst eine Lucke im Wissen um den russischen Finanzsektor. Fundiertes Wissen um die Herausforderungen in Russland bereitet aber die Grundlage fur geschaftliche Kooperationen. Es baut Vorurteile ab und warnt vor illusionaren Vorstellungen. Insofern ist dieses essential auch ein Anstoss zur Zusammenarbeit, in der Generierung von besserem Wissen, der Wissensvermittlung und des Transfers in die Praxis. Die AutorinProf. Dr. Tatjana Nikitina ist Professorin an der Saint-Petersburg State University of Economics, Russische Foederation. Sie ist dort ferner Direktorin des Russian-German Centre und International Centre for Financial Market Research.

This book concentrates on some leading questions in M&A research in last two decades and tries to find explanations concerning cultural issues. It focuses on pre-merger/acquisition issues mainly on negotiation, decision and intercultural due diligence. The core of this book is the pre-M&A stage in order to throw light on the cultural issues related to negotiation, decision making, and due diligence. Its primary purpose is a finer view of the impact of national, organisational and professional cultures in mergers and acquisitions. The general questions encountered in this book are related to nexus between culture and integration of the two companies, management's involvement in the cultural due diligence process, national, organisational and professional cultures' link to negotiation and decision-making process, negotiators' behavioral patterns, intentions, perceptions and attitudes identified and associated with M&A's success, managers' cultural specificity and their management practices. The aim of this book is to provide a deeper understanding of the cultural differences in negotiation and decision-making. This might help organisations provide better opportunities for cross border M&A across a wide cultural spectrum. With the increase of global mobility, cultural due diligence becomes more and more important. Multi-national corporations might garner a competitive advantage when they understand the importance of cultural due diligence. M&A professionals may benefit from a deeper understanding of cultural values that affect the perceptions of individuals during negotiation and decision-making by profession across cultures. Multinational companies that do not take into consideration or minimise the importance and the right content of cultural due diligence expose themselves to a higher risk of failure. The expectation of the author of this book is that the conclusions would help alert M&A scholars and practitioners of the need to thoroughly understand the cultural issues influencing the pre-M&A processes.

A tax credit is a tax incentive which allows certain taxpayers to subtract the amount of the credit from the total taxes they owe. This book explores some of the different tax credits that are currently available including credits for child and dependent care, adoption benefits, energy and housing credits, and income and work credits. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the child tax credit under current law, including temporary changes made by the 2017 tax revision There are two tax provisions that subsidize the child and dependent care expenses of working parents: the child and dependent care tax credit (CDCTC) and the exclusion for employer-sponsored child and dependent care. Chapter 2 provides a general overview of these two tax benefits, focusing on eligibility requirements and benefit calculation. Chapter 3 first briefly summarizes key components of the CDCTC, including reviewing eligibility requirements and how the credit is calculated. It then provides estimates of selected characteristics of familiessuch as income, number of children, marital status, and child care expensesthat claim the credit and, where appropriate, contrasts them with families that do not claim the credit. Chapter 4 focuses on federal adoption tax benefits, which consist of an adoption tax credit and an income tax exclusion for employer-provided adoption assistance. Chapter 5 explores one policy option for promoting residential energy efficiency: tax credits. It begins by providing an overview of the current residential energy-efficiency tax credits. It then goes on to provide an economic rationale for residential energy-efficiency tax incentives, introducing the concept of market failures and market barriers which may lead to suboptimal or economically inefficient investment in energy-efficiency technologies. Chapter 6 provides a brief overview of the renewable electricity PTC. The first section describes the credit. The second section provides a legislative history. The third section presents data on PTC claims and discusses the revenue consequences of the credit. The fourth section briefly considers some of the economic and policy considerations related to the credit. The chapter concludes by briefly noting policy options related to the PTC. The low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) program is one of the federal governments primary policy tools for encouraging the development and rehabilitation of affordable rental housing. As discussed in chapter 7, these nonrefundable federal housing tax credits are awarded to developers of qualified rental projects via a competitive application process administered by state housing finance authorities. Chapter 8 provides both an in-depth description of The American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) and an analysis of its economic impact. This chapter is organized to first provide an overview of the AOTC, followed by a legislative history that highlights the evolution of education tax credits from proposals in the 1960s through the recent permanent extension of the AOTC at the end of 2015. This chapter then analyzes the credit by looking at who claims the credit, the effect education tax credits have on increasing attendance at higher education institutions, and administrative issues with the AOTC. Finally, this chapter concludes with a brief overview of various policy options. Chapter 9 provides a general overview of the earned income tax credit (EITC). The chapter then summarizes the key legislative changes to the credit and provides analysis of some of the congressional intentions behind these changes. Chapter 10 looks at the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). The WOTC is a provision of the Internal Revenue Code that allows employers that hire individuals with certain personal characteristics, including veterans, recipients of certain public benefits, or other specified populations, to claim a tax credit equal to a portion of the wages paid to those individuals.

The authors of this book provide and discuss new research on performance measurements, types, and impacts on stock returns of mutual funds. Chapter One reviews the theoretical and empirical literature relating to mutual fund performance, screening, and fund flows. Chapter Two examines performance of Thai equity mutual funds over 5-year time periods of investment. Chapter Three provides mutual fund prediction models using artificial neural networks and genetic programming.

Climate change is perhaps among the most serious challenges that humankind has ever faced and perhaps the greatest market failure the world has ever seen. At the same time, clean unutilised energy resources around the world are available that could help remedy climate and environmental problems while also improving peoples lives. It is likely that most of the increased demand for energy in the future will be in the developing and emerging world. This is also where most unutilised clean energy sources are located. The challenge of climate change requires strong comprehensive and firm action from the international community. Clean energy projects tend to be large, capital intensive and long term. They require long term commitment from all the players involved as well as mutual trust. International financial institutions (IFIs), including the World Bank Group and regional development banks can play a key role in promoting the use of clean energy sources by facilitating clean energy investment in developing and emerging markets. This book focuses on those challenges, mainly using geothermal energy projects as examples, but also by providing an example of a large hydropower project to illustrate how the funding and risk mitigation instruments of IFIs, as well as national agencies such as export credit agencies (ECA)s, have been used to mobilise funds in a difficult investment environment. The book is divided into eleven chapters. Chapter One discusses the current global investment regime and the absence of an international organisation for investments comparable to the World Trade Organization that focuses on cross border trade. Chapter Two examines the World Bank Group and its emphasis on loans instead of guarantees for capital mobilisation. Chapter Three discusses international financial institutions, including regional development banks and their risk mitigation instruments. Chapter Four focuses on how IFIs can make more use of their instruments to support cross border clean energy projects in developing and emerging economies. Chapter Five assesses the effectiveness of the risk mitigation instruments used by the World Bank Group. Chapter Six analyses the upfront development costs associated with geothermal development and geothermal projects. Chapter Seven analyses the costs and benefits of deploying public-private partnerships for clean energy projects. Chapter Eight focuses on contested multilateralism and the recent establishment of new international financial institutions under Chinese leadership, i.e. the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development (BRICS) Bank. Chapter Nine examines Iceland with its geothermal cluster as well as how developing and emerging countries could learn from Icelands experience. Chapter Ten analyses selected cross border clean energy projects, including geothermal and hydropower, and shows how various funding and risk mitigation instruments have been used in practice. Chapter Eleven stresses the urgency for global action to address the climate crisis facing humankind. Finally, the concluding chapter shows how international financial institutions can be key instruments for successful global climate solutions. The book draws on the authors experience in three continents (Africa, Asia and Europe) as a staff member of the World Bank Group.

'A brilliantly readable account, based on exceptional access, of the transformation of the old Quaker bank into a hard-charging capitalist adventurer ... both a thriller and a reminder that business is fascinating because all human life is there' John Plender, Financial Times Based on unparalleled access to those involved, and told with compelling pace and drama, The Bank that Lived a Little describes three decades of boardroom intrigue at one of Britain's biggest financial institutions. In a tale of feuds, grandiose dreams and a struggle for supremacy between rival strategies and their adherents, Philip Augar gives a riveting account of Barclays' journey from an old Quaker bank to a full-throttle capitalist machine. The disagreement between those ambitious for Barclays to join the top table of global banks, and those preferring a smaller domestic role more in keeping with the bank's traditions, cost three chief executives their jobs and continues to divide opinion within Barclays, the City and beyond. This is an extraordinary corporate thriller, which among much else describes how Barclays came to buy Lehman Brothers for a bargain price in 2008, why it was so keen to avoid taking government funding during the financial crisis, and the price shareholders have paid for a decade of barely controlled ambition. But Augar also shows how Barclays' experiences are a paradigm for Britain's social and economic life over thirty years, which saw the City move from the edge of the economy to its very centre. These decades created unprecedented prosperity for a tiny number, and made the reputations of governments and individuals but then left many of them in tatters. The leveraged society, the winner-takes-all mentality and our present era of austerity can all be traced to the influence of banks such as Barclays. Augar's book tells this rollercoaster story from the perspective of many of its participants - and also of those affected by the grip they came to have on Britain.

The U.S. financial system processes millions of transactions each day representing daily transfers of trillions of dollars, securities, and other assets to facilitate purchases and payments. Concerns had been raised, even prior to the recent financial crisis, about the vulnerability of the U.S. financial system to infrastructure failure. These concerns about the "plumbing" of the financial system were heightened following the market disruptions of the recent crisis. This book outlines the changes to the supervision of key market infrastructure that are embodied in the Dodd-Frank Act, and how the associated systems are currently overseen and regulated.

The 2007-2009 financial crisis focused attention on weaknesses in the U.S. regulatory structure, including the lack of an agency or mechanism responsible for monitoring and addressing risks across the financial system and a shortage of timely information to facilitate that oversight. In response to the crisis, Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) in July 2010, which provided a broad range of regulatory reforms. Among many other things, the act established the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) to monitor the stability of the U.S. financial system and take actions to mitigate risks that might destabilise the system. This book provides an overview of elements and assessments of the Financial Stability Oversight Council and Office of Financial Research with a focus on Frequently Asked Questions.

On 31 October 2011, MF Global, a large brokerage firm registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a broker-dealer and with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a futures commission merchant (FCM), filed for bankruptcy. It appears that the firm failed as a result of losses from investments related to European sovereign debt. Normally, brokerage customers are protected from brokerage failure. On the securities side, investors may receive up to $500,000 from the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) if the failed brokerage's assets are insufficient to meet customer claims. In futures markets, there is no insurance scheme comparable to SIPC, but customers are supposed to be protected by strict segregation rules. In the MF Global case, however, more than $900 million in customer funds were reported missing. This book provides information about MF Global, the rules for handling of customer funds, the enforcement of those rules, and the bankruptcy proceeding.

Are you fully prepared for the implementation of the Senior Managers and Certification Regime across financial services firms and the related regulatory scrutiny on conduct and accountability? The 2008 financial crisis sparked major changes in global financial services regulation with attention and resources focused on the behaviour of firms and senior individuals and how they conduct their business. Regulatory reforms have been designed and implemented globally to address accountability and conduct in financial services. In the UK this has resulted in the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (SM&CR) being implemented across all FSMA-regulated firms. Conduct and Accountability in Financial Services: A Practical Guide provides comprehensive and expert guidance on how best to implement and comply with the SM&CR. In addition to acting as a guide to rule book requirements and regulatory expectations, it provides an in-depth look at the implications of the global focus on culture and conduct risk. A must-read text for all staff in UK financial services firms, professional associations, industry bodies, regulators, academics and advisers to financial services organisations, it covers: The context and regulatory basis for SM&CR including an overview of the development and roll-out of the regime Analysis of key changes from the previous 'approved person' approach Practical considerations for HR, internal audit and non-executive directors The increasing role of culture and conduct risk A practical overview of enforcement, penalties and learning lessons from enforcement actions Overarching principles of how to manage personal regulatory risk Regulatory relationship management The impact of technology An overview of related global developments Appendices with timeline, bibliography and a selection of other useful sources for senior managers Conduct and Accountability in Financial Services: A Practical Guide is on the syllabus reading list for the Regulation and Compliance exam offered by the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investments.

William D. Cohan's Money and Power: How Goldman Sachs Came to Rule the World is a chronicle of the most successful, iconic bank on Wall Street, from the firm's founding in 1869 to the present day. Goldman Sachs are the investment bank all other banks - and most businesses - want to emulate; the firm with the best talent, the best clients, the best strategy. But is their success just down to the gilded magic of the 'Goldman way'? William D. Cohan has gained unprecedented access to Goldman's inner circle - both on and off the record. In an astonishing story of clashing egos, backstabbing, sex scandals, private investigators, court cases and government cabals, he reveals what really lies beneath their gold-plated image. 'The best analysis yet of Goldman's increasingly tangled web of conflicts' Economist 'Startling ... lifts the lid on Goldman's pivotal role in the meltdown' Mail on Sunday 'Cohan portrays a firm that has grown so large and hungry that it's no longer long-term greedy but short-term vicious. And that's the wonder - and horror - of Goldman Sachs' Businessweek 'Cohan's book tells of bitter power struggles and business cock-ups' Guardian 'A definitive account of the most profitable and influential investment bank of the modern era' The New York Times Book Review William D. Cohan was an award-winning investigative journalist before embarking on a seventeen-year career as an investment banker on Wall Street. His first book, The Last Tycoons, about Lazard, won the 2007 Financial Times/Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year Award and was a New York Times bestseller. His second book, House of Cards, also a bestseller, is an account of the last days of Bear Stearns & Co.

This new volume presents leading international analyses of some of the most dynamic issues in the financial sector. Venture capital in the Singapore as well as the evolution of family firms are examined. The potential conflict of banks as shareholders is scrutinised as well. Other topics here include: interest rates and their predictability and smoothing, e-banking services, ownership of financial institutions and its potential impact on profitability. In addition, the predominance or lack thereof of foreign banks and the effect of them is viewed from an economic perspective.

Systemic Risk: History, Measurement and Regulation presents an overview of this emerging form of risk from a global perspective. Systemic risks endanger entire financial systems, not just individual financial institutions. In this volume, the authors review how systemic risk has evolved over the last 40 years across continents to come to the forefront of regulatory attention. They then discuss transmissions channels, provide a review of systemic risk measures, and describe new regulations that have been introduced, as well as the theory and practice of financial stability committees that have been set up internationally. Overall, the book provides a practical guide to understand, identify, assess and control systemic risk.While the financial research on systemic risk has strongly increased since the events of 2008, this book is a first in providing a detailed yet concise overview of the topic, covering the history of systemic risk, its measurement, and its regulation. The authors provide both academic and practitioner-oriented insights, and draw on their different regions of expertise to provide a global perspective on systemic risk.

Financial Services Canada is the only master file of current contacts and information that serves the needs of the entire financial services industry in Canada. With over 18,000 organizations and hard-to-find business information, Financial Services Canada is the most up-to-date source for names and contact information of industry professionals, senior executives, portfolio managers, financial advisors, agency bureaucrats and elected representatives.

Until about twenty years ago, the consensus view on the cause of financial-system distress was fairly simple: a run on one bank could easily turn to a panic involving runs on all banks, destroying some and disrupting the financial system. Since then, however, a series of events--such as emerging-market debt crises, bond-market meltdowns, and the Long-Term Capital Management episode--has forced a rethinking of the risks facing financial institutions and the tools available to measure and manage these risks."The Risks of Financial Institutions" examines the various risks affecting financial institutions and explores a variety of methods to help institutions and regulators more accurately measure and forecast risk. While new financial instruments, new participants, and new technologies typically have improved the informational efficiency of markets and have facilitated the matching of savings with investment opportunities, they have also changed the speed with which new information is incorporated in prices, often giving institutions little time to adjust before they see their financial soundness imperiled by new balance sheet weaknesses or by liquidity problems. The contributors--from academic institutions, regulatory organizations, and banking--bring a wide range of perspectives and experience to the issue. The result is a volume that points a way forward to greater financial stability and better risk management of financial institutions.

Internal investigations can be undertaken by a company or firm as a precursor to anticipated regulatory action, or for many other reasons. This title explains what a good regulatory investigation looks like whilst guiding investigators through the myriad of issues that can arise. It also dismantles many of the preconceptions and myths which have grown up around investigations in the post-financial crisis environment. Investigations are part of the 'business as usual' lifecycle for regulated firms. But there is no regulatory blueprint for what is accepted practice or accepted standards. This puts firms at a disadvantage with their regulators. Providing expert guidance on every step of a regulatory investigation including who should carry out the investigation, the scoping and planning, the interviewing and witness handling, how best to cooperate with the authorities, employee conduct and performance investigations, investigating senior staff, press, PR and Corporate Comms and litigation risks A Guide to Conducting Internal Investigations redresses the balance and provides a much needed blueprint for firms who find themselves in this position. This is a new practical resource for all firms and individuals that may find themselves the subject of, or be asked to assist in, a regulatory investigation or enforcement action.

This book provides unique information to prepare graduates and newly hired corporate and investment banking professionals for a career in the global markets environment of large universal and international investment banks. It shows the interrelationship between the three specific business functions of sales, trading, and research, as well as the interaction with corporate and institutional clients. The book fills a gap in the available literature by linking financial market theory to the practical aspects of day-to-day operations on a trading floor and offers a taxonomy of the current banking business, providing an in-depth analysis of the main market participants in the global markets ecosystem. Engaging the reader with case studies, anecdotes, and industry color, the book addresses the risks and opportunities of the global markets business in today's global financial markets both from a theoretical and from a practitioner's perspective and focuses on the most important fixed-income financial instruments from a pricing, risk-management, and client-marketing perspective.

The Operational Risk Handbook for Financial Companies is a groundbreaking new book. It seeks to apply for the first time a range of proven operational risk techniques from other industries and disciplines to the troubled territory of financial services. Operational risk expert Brian Barnier introduces a range of sophisticated, dependable and - crucially - approachable tools for risk evaluation, risk response and risk governance. He provides a more robust way of gaining a better picture of risks, shows how to build risk-return awareness into decision making, and how to fix (and not just report) risks. The practical importance of fully understanding and acting on risk to the business begins in the foreword on plan-B thinking, penned by Marshall Carter, chairman of the NYSE and deputy chairman of NYSE Euronext. The book is unique because: - It is not just about modeling and a few basic tools derived from regulatory requirements. Instead, it looks at management of risk to operations across industries, professional disciplines and history to help ops risk leaders become aware of the entire landscape of proven experience, not just their own conference room. - It is not just about compliance. Instead, it looks to operations as part of performance - managing risk to return for shareholders and other interests (e.g. guarantee funds). - It is not content to look at risk in stand-alone segments or silos; instead it takes a systems approach. - It is not just about ops risk leaders sharing war stories at a conference. Instead, it introduces a panel of six financial institution board members who get risk management and provide their perspectives throughout the book to encourage/demand more from ops risk to meet the needs of the institution in the world. - It is not a semi-random collection of tips and tricks. Instead, it is grounded in a risk-management process flow tailored to financial companies from a range of proven experience, providing tools to help at each step. Suitable for companies of all sizes, this book is of direct relevance and use to all business managers, practitioners, boards and senior executives. Key insights from and for each are built into every chapter, including unique contributions from board members of a range of companies. The Operational Risk Handbook for Financial Companies is an essential book for making better decisions at every level of a financial company; ones that measurably improve outcomes for boards, managers, employees and shareholders alike.