SAI Global Compliance announced it is offering integrated software solutions, based on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Supervision and Examination Manual, for automating risk and compliance self-assessments.

Integrated within its Compliance 360 product, these solutions help consumer financial services organizations better assess and demonstrate that their compliance and risk management programs are working effectively.

The first edition of the CFPB manual provides a framework outlining how the bureau will examine regulatory compliance and consumer risk management. The new procedures focus on unfair, deceptive, and abusive acts or practices (UDAAP) and specific risks to consumers. In response to this, financial services organizations are feeling the pressure to proactively self-assess and better demonstrate that their risk and compliance programs are effective—or risk steep fines, federal censures, and reputation and brand damage.

Automation of risk and compliance self-assessments in Compliance 360 enables financial services organizations to monitor for gaps, manage the effectiveness of risk controls, track remediation efforts, produce measurement and scoring reports, and maintain a consistent, audit-ready state. Risk managers and compliance officers can monitor tasks, owners, and due dates and receive alerts on critical items that are overdue—before they impact a company’s compliance status.

Based on risk assessment templates and compliance assessment checklists in the CFPB manual, Compliance 360 allows for users to assess the overall state of risk and compliance management with online dashboards and reports that correspond with the CFPB examination categories. The system’s Virtual Evidence Room provides a central collection point for all regulatory and risk-related documents, where financial services organizations can demonstrate proof of compliance and risk management for CFPB examinations.

Compliance assessments can be tailored based on company needs and run on a predetermined schedule for automated distribution to individuals or groups both internally and externally. For each question, the assessment creates a task based on “Yes” or “No” answers. “Yes” answers result in tasks created for linking supporting evidence documents back to the requirement. “No” answers result in tasks assigned for identifying compliance gaps and completing remediation actions.

Consumer risk assessments are organized into configurable frameworks to store information about processes, objectives, risks, and controls. Real-time reporting provides visibility into risk exposure and the executive dashboard offers a global view of all risk-related activities, enabling managers to quickly assess problem areas and proactively correct them. Automatic email alerts can also be sent when risk in a particular area has been exceeded or when a control test has failed.

“The CFPB has significantly raised the bar for examinations related to consumer risks and regulatory compliance, and now is the time for financial services organizations to demonstrate confidence and transparency in their programs," says Steve McGraw, president, GRC, SAI Global Compliance.

 

 

[This article was posted on June 18, 2012, on the website of ABA Banking Journal, www.ababj.com.]         

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