Wolters Kluwer Urges Banks to Explore Benefits of Holistic GFRC Strategy in New White Paper

Banks which adopt a Governance, Finance, Risk and Compliance (GFRC) approach to their business are able to operate more cohesively by reinforcing the connective tissue that binds critical functions together. That’s according to a new white paper from Wolters Kluwer that shows how GFRC encompasses all sources of risk, financial and non-financial alike, providing a foundation for processing and interpreting data in a more holistic way.

Even during normal conditions, the traditional  Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) approach can encourage thinking that’s two dimensional and overly dependent on extrapolating long-running trends into the future. This is plainly inadequate post financial crisis, in an age when banks encounter so many risks, notes the white paper, titled “GFRC: Bringing Critical Functions Together for a More Comprehensive Picture.”

The paper outlines the many benefits of such a model, including how it can facilitate best practice approaches to new regulatory standards, such as IFRS 9, which requires banks to estimate critical bits of data or make broader forecasts based on various possible scenarios, rather than on similar situations in the past.

A comprehensive, forward-looking GFRC management model is, Wolters Kluwer argues, more than good compliance, it’s good business. Treating a bank like a single organism headed toward the future permits it to operate more efficiently by reducing the duplication of effort that results from different business segments carrying out the same tasks. It also increases firms’ ability to spot and respond to changes in the marketplace faster and in a more targeted, effective manner.

But even the best management framework requires the right support systems to work effectively. Firms moving to a GFRC model therefore must refresh the way they think about technological infrastructure, the white paper adds.

“Firms adopting a GFRC approach need technology that can store massive amounts of historical and current data – data sets that are often so large and complex that traditional processing methods are

inadequate,” says Richard Reeves, vice president of Strategy for OneSumX at Wolters Kluwer. “Banks need to overhaul antiquated organizational structures and technology if they are to benefit from a GFRC model. Failing to recognize that means losing ground to more nimble, progressive rivals and running afoul of regulators who are demanding that banks handle increasing amounts of interrelated data and display ever greater foresight.”

About Wolters Kluwer Governance, Risk & Compliance

Wolters Kluwer Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) is a division of Wolters Kluwer which provides legal, finance, risk and compliance professionals and small business owners with a broad spectrum of solutions, services and expertise needed to help manage myriad governance, risk and compliance needs in dynamic markets and regulatory environments.

Wolters Kluwer is a global information services company that provides information, software, and services to professionals in four main areas: law, tax, finance and healthcare. The company reported 2014 annual revenues of €3.7 billion. The group serves customers in over 170 countries, and employs 19,000 people worldwide. Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands. Its shares are quoted on Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices.