Online Discussion to Explore How Financial Institutions Manage Risk

“Navigating Risk in the Financial Sector” will be the topic of the July edition of the Central Bank of Barbados and Financial Services Commission’s Domestic Financial Institutions Conference (DFIC) series. The event will take place online on Thursday, July 8 at 10:00 a.m.

“All organisations deal with risks that have the potential to affect their success. The financial sector is no different. Given the nature of their business, the ability to manage risk has implications for financial institutions and their clients, and at a macro level, our economy,” said Central Bank Governor Cleviston Haynes. “In this session, our panellists will be discussing some of the major challenges currently confronting financial institutions and how they can mitigate them.”

Those panellists are Patrick McKenna, Chief Risk Officer at CIBC FirstCaribbean; Laverne Derrick-Watson, Risk Manager at Barbados Public Workers Cooperative Credit Union; and Gayle Marshall, Director, Risk Analytics at the Financial Services Commission.

The Governor previewed some of the areas that will be discussed during the 90-minute event. “With the increased level of unemployment and reduced work hours, financial institutions have to pay close attention to credit risk – the ability of clients to repay their loans. And of course, cybersecurity is another major issue, as recent events both regionally and internationally have reminded us. So, we encourage all Barbadians to register and to attend this session to learn more and to pose their questions to our panel.

“Navigating Risk in the Financial Sector” is the third event in this year’s DFIC series. Previous sessions focused on household investment in renewable energy and technology and customer service.