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08.02.2024

News & Communication

Regulatory Outlook 2024

2024 is set to be a pivotal year for the European regulatory landscape, with Belgium commencing its presidency of the Council of the European Union. The financial landscape in the country is poised for significant changes, with the legislative agenda taking precedence in its program. To kickstart the year, Avantage Reply is keen to highlight our perspective on the key issues slated for attention.

18.01.2024

Blog

The Market in Crypto-Assets Regulation: a Deep Dive

The first comprehensive European regulation pertaining to the crypto-market was approved in May 2023 and is known as the Market in Crypto-assets Regulation (MiCaR). With the Fifth AML Directive, the Union had already regulated crypto-assets in the AML space, albeit under a different name: virtual currency.

07.12.2023

Blog

Risk and Compliance in the Digital Age - Assessing the Impact of the European AI Act

Many believe that artificial intelligence (AI) will be the "next big thing" in the digital era. Customers and businesses are increasingly using this technology to complete tasks that were previously limited to human operators and to solve problems.

21.11.2023 - 23.11.2023 / FRANKFURT

Event

Reply at FI-Forum 2023

Reply is represented at the FI Forum in Frankfurt. Meet Reply at their booth and learn all about the range of services for the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe. Also visit the presentation "Banking in the Cloud - Future IT Banking Architecture: Our Perspective and Use Cases" on 22 November 2023.

08.11.2023

Blog

The clock is ticking on the Basel IV implementation – Are you ready?

On 27 October 2021, the European Commission (EC) published its legislative package, implementing the finalisation of the Basel III reforms, widely recognised as Basel IV. The Capital Requirements Regulation 3 (CRR III) and the Capital Requirements Directive 6 (CRD VI) were put in place to signify a new era of banking and financial compliance.

08.11.2023

Blog

DORA: The clock is ticking!

The Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA), entered into force on the 16th of January 2023 and will be applicable from the 17th of January 2025. Its main purpose is to enhance and strengthen the cybersecurity practices of entities across the EU financial sector and to harmonise key requirements and reporting obligations.

31.10.2023

Event

CLOUD IN FINANCIAL SERVICES - BREAKFAST MEETING SERIES (2/2)

Reply is hosting the final instalment of the two-part breakfast meeting series to present the results of the survey and delve into specific topics covered by the second Cloud in Financial Services Survey with senior financial services executives. 

07.08.2023

Blog

RAISING THE BAR: HM TREASURY’S CONSULTATION TO REFORM THE UK'S AML/CTF SUPERVISORY REGIME

On 30 June 2023, HM Treasury published a consultation on reform of the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) supervisory. The consultation proposes four possible models and seeks respondents’ feedback on the potential benefits and drawbacks of each reform. Feedback and responses to the consultation must be submitted by 30 September 2023.

02.08.2023

Blog

European Court of Auditors' Findings on the ECB'S Supervision of Banks' Credit Risk: A balanced view

On May 12, the European Court of Auditors (“ECA”) published a special report on European Union (“EU”) supervision of banks’ credit risk. It concluded that the European Central Bank (“ECB”) has stepped up its efforts but more is needed to increase assurance that credit risk, in particular non-performing loans (“NPLs”), is properly managed and covered.

02.08.2023

Blog

Trading wind-down: expectations and considerations

In a move to improve the resilience of the UK financial sector, the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) issued Supervisory Statement (SS) 1/22 in May 2022. This statement delineates the expectations for certain firms involved in trading activities that could pose significant adverse effects on the stability of UK’s financial sector.

27.06.2023

Blog

IMPLEMENTING THE CONSUMER DUTY FOR ASSET MANAGEMENT FIRMS

The Duty sets the standard of care that firms should provide to customers in retail financial markets. The FCA has introduced a new principle, Principle 12, known as the Consumer Principle. This principle requires firms to act in a way that delivers good outcomes for retail customers.

19.06.2023

News & Communication

BCBS 239: A renewed ECB Priority

Since the release of the BCBS 239 Principles in 2014, the European Central Bank (ECB) has been urging European banks to comply with these Principles. These Principles cover three main topics: Overarching governance and structure, risk data aggregation capabilities, and risk reporting practices (often referred to by the ECB as 'RDAR').

19.06.2023

Blog

The Future of Trading Books: Incorporating Climate Risk in Prudential Frameworks

On October 2022, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) released a report titled "Climate Risk Scenario Analysis for the Trading Book", which provides guidance for banks and financial institutions on how to assess climate risk in their trading books.

09.06.2023

Event

Cloud in Financial Services - Breakfast Meeting Series (1/2)

Reply is excited to launch a two-part breakfast meeting series to present the results of the survey and delve into specific topics covered by the survey with senior financial services executives. In collaboration with the European Banking Federation, Insurance Europe, and Profs. Markus Perkmann (Imperial College London) and Nelson Phillips (University of California, Santa Barbara), is currently conducting its second annual survey on Cloud in Financial Services.

26.05.2023

Press Article

A European supervisory revolution? What the proposed SREP changes mean for your bank

If you have ever worked at a bank, you might have come across a process called Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process (SREP). A “baby” of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and the European debt crisis, this process is an essential element in ensuring that banks remain safe and reliable.

25.05.2023

Event

BREAKFAST BRIEFING CONSUMER DUTY: THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

We believe that the journey towards ensuring good outcomes for customers has only just begun and will have far reaching impact on the way firms are built and run. Join us for the breakfast event, where you will have an opportunity to share ideas across various areas of the Consumer Duty, understand the challenges faced by firms and interact with industry leaders. To register for this event, please RSVP to .

28.04.2023

News & Communication

How the EBA plans to increase personal accountability for compliance failures

The year 2022 has brought a new wave of financial crime enforcement with Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Know-Your-Customer (KYC) and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) fines skyrocketing after a lull period during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fines have risen over 50% globally compared to 2021 and show no sign of slowing down in 2023.

20.03.2023

News & Communication

Impact of the new Dora Regulation on Luxembourg based Financial Institutions

The publication of Regulation (EU) 2022/2554 on the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) for financial institutions in the Official Journal of the European Union on December 27, 2022, has significant implications for Luxembourg-based financial entities. Avantage Reply is actively assisting these entities to ensure they are prepared to meet this challenge.

08.02.2023

Blog

CONSUMER DUTY: THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

On 25 January 2023, the FCA published the findings from its review of firms’ plans to embed the Consumer Duty (the “Duty”) within their businesses. These implementation plans should have been agreed by firms’ Boards by the end of October 2022.

30.01.2023

Press Article

THREE URGENT DEMANDS BANKS MUST MEET FOR EFFECTIVE CLIMATE RISK MANAGEMENT

Perhaps unsurprisingly, climate action failure, extreme weather events and biodiversity loss have been identified as three global risks anticipated to have the most damaging effect over the next ten years according to the World Economic Forum Global Risks Perception Survey 2022.

05.12.2022

Blog

2022 Annual Cyclical Scenario (ACS): What is new?

On 26 September 2022, the Bank of England (BoE) published details of the return to its 2022 Annual Cyclical Scenario (ACS). The ACS was not performed over the past two years during Covid-19 and postponed in March 2022 due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

03.05.2022 / ESG

Event

ESG Breakfast

Avantage Reply will be hosting its first ESG Breakfast at their office on the 3rd of May 2022 (from 8:00 to 10:30am) and we would be grateful if you could join us. This session would be an opportunity to discuss the current ESG challenges and contribute to the conversation, as well as, a chance to ask questions to the experts and network with peers.

26.04.2022

News & Communication

CSSF 22/806 ON OUTSOURCING ARRANGEMENTS

On April 22nd 2022, the CSSF published the longawaited Circular on outsourcing arrangements which sets out the new regulatory requirements applicable to in-scope entities as of June 30th 2022. The new Circular translates the EBA guidelines on outsourcing arrangements into locally adapted regulations.

01.02.2022

News & Communication

Alternative Reference Rates

The discontinuation of LIBOR requires the financial industry to shift to alternatives, the socalled Alternative Reference Rates (“ARR”), with implications on products that refer to variable interest rates. Major structural differences between LIBOR and the ARR necessitate a reconsideration of product design, operational processes and IT solutions.

26.01.2022 / TechNative

Press Article

5 Key Risk Trends and Implications for Financial Institutions

Brain Momoh, manager at Avantage Reply, writes about some of the key emerging risks facing financial institutions. Read the full article at TechNative.

07.12.2021

News & Communication

IT Outsourcing modified CSSF Circular

In the context of growing importance of cloud-driven solutions, National Competent Authority in Luxembourg provides further details in respect to regulatory requirements around contractual clauses and obligation of notification prior to outsourcing of material IT activities.

18.11.2021

Event

Wine Tasting Luxembourg 2021

Reply is hosting a special wine tasting event on the 18th of November 2021, to simply enjoy a delightful evening. The event will take place from 7pm to 10pm at the Hotel Melia Luxembourg (1 Park Dräi Eechelen,1499 Luxembourg). Join us and let’s share some glasses together while being guided by our sommelier.

18.11.2021 / Paris

Event

Wine Tasting Paris 2021

The event will take place from 7pm to 11pm at the Hyatt Paris Madeleine Hotel (24 Boulevard Malesherbes, 75008, Paris). The evening takes place under the splendid glass roof of the Gustave Eiffel workshops. Take a break, join us and as the tasting progresses, let yourself be guided by our sommelier while enjoying an exceptional setting and the know-how of a master chef of France, Chef Sébastien Roux. Please note that the redirection page is in French.

12.11.2021

Blog

Transforming Data Collection – The joint transformation programme

On Wednesday the 13th October 2021, the Bank of England (BoE) and the Financial Conduct (FCA) have announced the launch of the joint transformation programme on Transforming Data Collection, officially kicked off at the beginning of July 2021: this initiative follows the letter published on 23 February 2021 from the two authorities.

10.11.2021 - 12.11.2021 / Hybrid Event

Event

Italian Association of Actuaries – National Meeting

Reply will be a Sponsor at the Italian meeting of Actuaries which will focus on technological innovation and systemic risks.

14.06.2021

News & Communication

AML PACKAGE 2021

The European Commission presented an AML package in July 2019, where it highlighted a number of deficiencies in implementation of the EU anti-money laundering framework, while the recent money laundering scandals led the need to develop a new comprehensive approach at the EU level.

27.05.2021

News & Communication

Avantage Reply UK announce partnership with ElysianNxt

Avantage Reply UK and ElysianNxt are pleased to announce that we have entered into a strategic partnership, bringing together Reply’s management and risk consulting expertise with ElysianNxt’s cutting edge risk technology.

28.04.2021

News & Communication

MiFID "Quick Fix"

The intention of the “Quick fix” amendments to MiFID 2 is to support economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. The European Commission tries to achieve this via certain reliefs of administrative requirements on firms. Member states are required to transpose the changes into national law by 28 November 2021 and apply them by 28 February 2022.

23.04.2021

Blog

From Operational Resilience
to Operational Excellence

At Reply, we support, guide and advise our clients in their Operational Resilience to Operational Excellence journey through our deep industry experience, leading strategic partnerships and proven framework.

09.04.2021

News & Communication

The EBA will make its Basel III Monitoring Exercise Mandatory

The European Banking Authority (EBA) published on 16th of March 2021 a decision, which changes the Basel III monitoring exercise from its current voluntary nature to a mandatory exercise from December 2021.

03.03.2021 / Le Soir Belgium

Press Article

An ecological opportunity for European banks : towards the introduction of "green" home loans

Banks, like all economic players, are called upon to contribute to the climate effort and the implementation of concrete actions in response to the Paris agreements limiting the increase in the planet's temperature to 1.5°C.

22.02.2021 / UK Finance

Press Article

Improving financial services regulators’ cost-benefit analyses

Find out how Avantage Reply worked with UK Finance to recommend improvements to financial services regulators’ cost-benefit analyses. Learn how the team's research, supplemented by discussions with the industry, led to the making of 7 key recommendations in the resulting policy paper.

22.12.2020 / Risk Management Magazine

Press Article

Blockchain securitization: an innovative technology to boost asset liquidity

The main aim of this paper is to show the potential benefits for the Securitisation process, both in terms of the setup of operations and in the entire product life cycle, derived from the adoption of the Blockchain Technology.

30.11.2020 / Climate and ESG

Event

Roundtable - Climate and ESG Related Risks

On 24 November Avantage Reply welcomed guest speakers from industry, law and academia for a roundtable to discuss the laws, regulations and popular sentiments that are ushering in a new era of the Economy. Download the presentation now.

20.11.2020 / LIBOR

Press Article

Äddi LIBOR, Moien Alternative Reference Rates

London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) is the world’s most widely used benchmark for short-term interest rates. It is a reference rate for some $200 to $350 trillion in mortgages, consumer loans, derivatives and other financial instruments, which elevates it to the status of a gauge for the health of the banking system. As of the end-2021, it will cease to exist. This development is both a challenge and an opportunity for the financial industry.

16.11.2020

Event

PRMIA Risk Leader Summit 2020

Avantage Reply are proud to announce their involvement as Gold Sponsors of the PRMIA Risk Leader Summit 2020. The virtual event, held over two half-day sessions on 16 - 17 November 2020, offers an exploratory risk leadership experience looking at the new dynamics governing the risk profession.

20.10.2020 / Regulatory Reporting

Press Article

Integrated reporting system – The end of the regulatory burden?

In recent years, financial institutions have faced a significant increase in the volume and complexity of regulatory reporting requirements imposed by the supervisory authorities. In this context, institutions are required to submit hundreds of thousands of data points in different templates and formats to various supervisors (European Authorities, national authorities, or both). It is worth noting that the reporting deadlines and frequencies at which data points must be reported to the relevant supervisory authorities vary greatly across national jurisdictions.