Risk Management

As part of an ongoing government program prompted by the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the Federal Reserve Board, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the SEC jointly issue a report that identifies operational risks to the nation’s financial system and requires the institutions within it to take certain precautions in response. These measures include identifying clearing and settlement activities on which critical financial markets depend and establishing appropriate objectives for their resumption following a wide-scale disruption. The document, Interagency Paper on Sound Practices to Strengthen the Resilience of the U.S. Financial System ( www.sec.gov/news/studies/34-47638.htm ), specifies crucial objectives, including testing to ensure the continuity of essential business functions during an emergency. It also prescribes techniques, such as geographically dispersing resources to minimize damage and facilitate recovery, financial institutions can employ to achieve these goals within required time frames—in some cases by the end of 2004—that vary according to each organization’s role within the system.