UBP’s risk-management approach is an integrated and continuous process. It pursues several crucial aims:
- preserving the firm’s capital base and viability;
- balancing capital-preservation and capital-optimisation (risk/reward);
- maximising clients’ and shareholders’ assets and seizing opportunities;
- blending a risk-awareness culture into the corporate culture;
- meeting regulatory and supervisory requirements at all times.
This integrated approach to risk-management relies on two perspectives: strategic risk-management on the one hand and tactical risk-management on the other.
The strategic risk-management process is a top-down approach focusing on the vision, appetite, and governance of risk and the overall risk-management framework.
Tactical risk-management is a bottom-up approach structured around UBP’s business activities (Private Banking, (link 1st page) Asset Management, (link 1st page) Treasury & Trading, and Operations) and risk classes (market, credit, operational, and reputational).
The risk-management mandate set by the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee (EC) is clearly defined and codified in various policies and procedures. The aim is to ensure that all significant risks associated with the Group’s activities are identified, assessed and controlled, properly and in good time, for the benefit of both clients and shareholders.
In terms of organisational structure, the Group has three levels of risk-management/risk-control responsibility:
- overall guidance and supervision is performed by UBP’s Committee of the Board of Directors (CoB), which is responsible for determining the general risk-management policy and strategy (vision, appetite and control standards);
- management and operational supervision falls to the Executive Committee and the Risk Committee;
- risk control is primarily within the remit of the Risk Management Unit, as well as that of the Compliance Desk, Credit Control Department and Internal Audit.
The Risk Committee is responsible for ensuring that UBP’s overall risk-taking is consistent with the risk-appetite/risk-capital allocation, limits, policies and procedures set by the CoB and the EC and commensurate with returns and market rate expectations in all activities.
