Working Groups and Committees

The Regulatory Affairs, Economic Research, Global Policy Initiatives and Digital Finance departments organize groups of representatives from IIF members to articulate international perspectives on policy priorities, and to interact with corresponding groups in the official sector.

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Note 1: The Board of Directors of the Institute defines overall views on regulatory and related issues, as articulated by the Institute to the G20, International Monetary Fund (IMF), and Financial Stability Board (FSB). 

Note 2: The working groups listed below may be more or less active at any given time depending on what issues are currently most pressing. In addition, ad-hoc groups may be formed from time to time to respond to specific needs. 

Regulatory Affairs Department

IIF Steering Committee on Regulatory Capital (SCRC)

The SCRC is the senior group within the IIF responsible for coordinating efforts in the area of regulatory capital and liquidity requirements. It plays a central role in leading the dialogue with the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) on all issues related to the Basel III framework. Membership within the committee is comprised exclusively of senior leaders from IIF member banks and is by invitation only. The following SCRC working groups are called upon periodically for relevant consultations:

  • Working Group on Capital Adequacy (WGCA)
    The WGCA interfaces with several of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision’s (BCBS) sub-groups to address technical issues, especially regarding credit risk, leverage, and capital, including related issues such as large exposures.
  • Working Group on Market Risk (WGMR)
    The WGMR interfaces with the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) to address any issues related to the Basel requirements for market risk, including the presentation of impact data. This working group is also involved in the Joint Trades Counterparty Credit Risk project as well as examining any issues related to the IBOR transition process. 
  • Disclosure Working Group (DWG)
    The Disclosure Working Group provides a voice for banks on global risk disclosure issues. The DWG address issues on improvement of risk disclosures of banks mainly focusing on the work by the Financial Stability Board (FSB) and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS). The DWG also seeks constructive ways to improve disclosure across the global financial services industry, including reducing redundant or outmoded disclosures.

Global Policy Initiatives Committees and Working Groups

Sustainable Finance Working Group (SFWG)  

Chair: Judson Berkey, Managing Director and Group Head of Sustainability Regulatory Strategy, UBS

Bringing together over 200 members representing banks, investors, insurers, professional service firms and multilateral financial institutions, the IIF SFWG seeks to build consensus and advance industry perspectives on the dynamic global sustainable finance agenda, including through regulatory and policy engagement, strategic projects, analytical research and development of tools and resources.  By providing an international forum for public-private sector dialogue and collaboration, the SFWG supports the design and implementation of effective climate and sustainability-related financial sector policy and regulatory frameworks (including on topics such as disclosure, taxonomies, prudential supervision, and financial stability assessment).  A key SFWG objective is to promote capital market solutions that support product innovation and the scaling up of sustainable finance (including by engaging on barriers to and catalysts for the broader mobilization of private finance). The SFWG coordinates with other IIF Working Groups, notably in the Regulatory Affairs Department, to respond to sustainable finance-related global policy and regulatory developments. The SFWG engages regularly with official sector entities including: the global standard setting bodies like the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS); the G20/B20; the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS); the IMF, World Bank/IFC and other multilaterals; and the OECD and other international organizations including the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), as well as national authorities to support international collaboration and reduce fragmentation.

  • Sustainable Finance Policy Expert Group (SFPEG)
    The SFPEG, co-led by the IIF Global Policy Initiatives and Regulatory Affairs Teams, serves as the nexus for industry dialogue on policy and regulatory developments across the climate and ESG sphere, and options to support greater alignment of jurisdictional frameworks and emerging global standards. The SFPEG serves as the platform for development of industry consensus views on policy issues, including IIF responses to consultations, and broader official-sector engagement. The SFPEG is comprised of global policy and regulatory leads within IIF member financial institutions (banks, insurers, asset managers), who are responsible for developing advocacy strategies and managing official-sector engagement on sustainability topics.
     
  • Sustainable Finance Disclosure, Data, and Classification (SFDDC)
    The SFDDC group, co-led by the IIF Global Policy Initiatives and Regulatory Affairs Teams, provides a platform for dialogue on technical issues, identification of common priorities, and delivery of special projects in the disclosure, data, and classification sphere. Key agenda items for this group include the development of global disclosure standards, use of ESG ratings and data products, evolving disclosure practices (e.g. transition plans), and the design and implementation of classification systems, such as taxonomies.
     
  • Sustainable Finance Risk and Alignment Methodologies (SFRAM)
    The SFRAM group, co-led by the IIF Global Policy Initiatives and Regulatory Affairs Teams, provides a platform for dialogue on technical issues and tools, identification of emerging practices, and delivery of special projects on risk and alignment topics, with a special focus on climate change. Key agenda items for this group include the design and implementation of risk management frameworks, the design of industry and supervisory scenario analysis exercises, metrics and methodologies for climate risk and alignment quantification, and links between climate risks and the prudential framework.

Where possible, we encourage firms to coordinate internally on their nominations to SFPEG, SFDDC, and SFRAM groups. To keep the group sizes manageable and maintain diversity of representation across the IIF membership, we anticipate having one or two representatives from a given firm within a group.
 

Digital Finance Groups

IIF Digital Finance Working Group

The Digital Finance Working Group guides and oversees the IIF’s advocacy on digital and innovation regulatory and policy issues. Its scope includes topics related to data (including data-sharing, data-protection and data-localization), new entrants and competition, ‘RiskTech’ (adoption of innovations to improve risk management, including RegTech), crypto-currencies and distributed ledger technology and cyber-security. Where this working group focuses on the strategic agenda, it is in some cases supported by other technical working groups. Membership of this working group is open to banks, insurers and asset managers.

Economic Research Groups

Market Monitoring Group (MMG)

Co-Chairs: Lorenzo Bini Smaghi, Chairman of the Board, Société Générale; Nathan Sheets, Global Chief Economist, Citi

Launched in 2009, the MMG focuses on structural changes in financial markets, the regulatory environment, and the global economy that may be sources of potential systemic risks. The group convenes Chief Risk Officers and other senior market practitioners from banks and institutional investors as well as academics and specialized consultancies. The MMG monitors emerging vulnerabilities including those related to changes in liquidity provision and the impact of new financial technologies; mispriced assets, crowded trades and concentration risk; deterioration in business practices; and other nascent risks of concern to the industry and policymakers. The group explores ways to contain these risks and shares its views with market participants and public-sector bodies in an effort to enhance financial stability.

The MMG holds meetings as well as conference calls and regular briefing and support from IIF staff. Particular emphasis is placed on regular communication with relevant public-sector bodies including the Financial Stability Board, the U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council, the European Systemic Risk Board, the IMF, and other key policy-setting bodies and research centers.  Membership in this group is subject to co-chair approval.

Other Groups

IIF Future Leaders Group

The IIF Future Leaders Group is comprised of dynamic young leaders representing some of the brightest emerging talent in the industry. Each annual class of Future Leaders meets twice a year, generally around major IIF meetings, for a multi-day program designed to introduce them to the big ideas and topics that will drive the future of the industry. Participation in Future Leaders is open to those 40 or under who have track records of achievement within their institutions and have the potential, in the nominating institutions’ view, to become a leader in global finance. Participation is by invitation only and participants are nominated by a member firm’s senior management.