Learning From The Ripple Effect—Virtual Assets and Virtual Asset Service Providers I have always been fascinated by the ripple effect. Throw a stone, preferably large, into an otherwise calm body of water, and the result is striking. Circular waves move out evenly in all directions, rippling outward from the impact of the dropped stone. One [...]
There are words, and then there are words. One of those words is proactive. While overused, the word has connotations that shouldn’t be dismissed—especially in the world of compliance. Last year, the FRB, in their 3rd Quarter Compliance Outlook (https://consumercomplianceoutlook.org/2020/third-issue/the-benefits-of-a-proactive-compliance-program) focused on the concept of proactive and discussed the FRAM automotive oil filter brand and [...]
For many Bank Secrecy Act officers and their boards of directors, the thing that haunts their dreams most is their examiners finding some suspicious transactions that should have been investigated, but weren't. If such transactions are found, what typically follows are two questions along the lines of: Why weren't these transactions identified by the institution [...]
When economic times are good and funds are relatively easy to lend without meaningful short-term risk, most financial institutions find themselves in strong positions from a credit risk and earnings perspective. Yet, the tough lessons of lending and risk over the past 30 years have taught us many times over that economic cycles repeat. It’s [...]
"Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving." -Albert Einstein Successfully riding a bike to get where you want to go requires patience, knowledge, and experience. Determining what to say to your board of directors is like learning how to balance on a bicycle. The “what to say” is [...]
The ever-increasing importance of a robust BSA/AML monitoring system has become more than clear in recent years. However, an all-encompassing monitoring system often feels beyond the reach of the smaller financial institution. Resources are finite, and some institutions are left floundering when attempting to cover all their bases. What must your small financial institution do to [...]
Originally published on CUInsight.com. In case you're wondering what a fire pit pagoda looks like... Have you ever built something from scratch? I mean no plans, nothing—just pulled an idea out of the air and went for it? I have, and let me tell you, it takes an amazing amount of time and [...]
