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CRO RISK FORUM: How to manage risk in perilous times

28 July 2009

Sean Ringsted, chief risk officer and chief actuary for the Ace Group, says the financial crisis has taught us some important lessons

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In the search for clues as to what precipitated the 2008 global financial meltdown and what can be done to prevent a repeat, one area has emerged as both a potential cause and an area of opportunity – the risk management function.

Risk management, which has evolved largely behind the scenes into a more far-reaching and critical discipline at major companies over the past decade, has now been thrust into the spotlight, mainly because of the dramatic failures of financial services companies caught by the dramatic unraveling of financial markets that were underpinned by the leveraged accumulation of exposures to the housing sector.

If you were a leader or risk officer at any financial services company over the past year, you learned painful lessons about the importance of protecting both sides of the balance sheet. 

While the function’s shortcomings may have contributed to the financial turmoil, with proper refocusing from...


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Catastrophe bond issuance was $4.3bn in 2011. How much new issuance will there be in 2012?

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