A good reputation has always been considered a vital asset for a financial institution. Recent developments have shown the impact that reputational risk events can have on a bank’s bottom line and there is a growing consensus that the management of reputational risk should be integrated into the overall risk management structure. However, reputational risk is a rather new risk category, often considered to have peculiar characteristics, and its integration into existing risk frameworks is not yet fully understood. Meanwhile, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision clearly indicated in the Basel II Framework that it expects the industry to develop standards for reputational risk management.

The Forum on Reputational Risk Management in Banking was established in 2007 to

• provide a platform for dialog and knowledge exchange on common and best practices in reputational risk management, and
• work towards a shared set of principles in reputational risk management in the banking industry based on best practice elements.

The Forum events are sponsored by a financial services institution and moderated by ECOFACT.

The First Forum

The First Forum on Reputational Risk Management in Banking was held on February 29, 2008 at Dresdner Bank's Eugen-Gutmann-Haus in Berlin. The First Forum attracted practitioners from 11 international banks who shared insights into their current practices in reputational risk management. They agreed on a common set of 10 best practice elements covering organisational structure, processes, tools and guiding principles.

The First Forum on Reputational Risk Management was attended by representatives from the following banks: ABN AMRO, Credit Suisse, Danske Bank, Dresdner Bank, HSBC, HypoVereinsbank, UniCredit Group, West LB. Additional contributions were provided by Citi, Royal Bank of Canada, and UBS.

The Second Forum

The Second Forum on Reputational Risk Management in Banking was organized by HSBC and ECOFACT and took place on October 16, 2008 at HSBC headquarters in London. Delegates of 16 major international banks set out the 10 best practice elements of reputational risk management, took them to the next level, and discussed implementation options.

The Second Forum on Reputational Risk Management gathered representatives from the following financial services institutions: ABN AMRO, Barclays, BBVA, Credit Suisse, Dresdner Bank, European Bank of Reconstruction and Development, Export Development Canada, Fortis, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, Royal Bank of Canada, Royal Bank of Scotland, Standard Chartered, UBS, Unicredit Group, and WestLB.

All Forum participants and additional contributors can access the full Forum documentation in the restricted member area.

How You Can Join

The Forum is intended to become a platform for dialog on common practices in reputational risk management in banking. We are therefore happy to enlist additional banks.

If you represent a bank we would like to share the results of the Forum with you. Like existing Forum participants, this requires you to provide the Forum with a brief description of the reputational risk management practices at your bank. In return, you will gain access to the restricted section, with the individual contributions of all members as well as findings of the forum events. In addition, you will be invited to all follow-on events.

For more information please contact us via e-mail () or call Martina Klose on +41 44 350 6064.