Risk Management Deluge Has Some Banks Turning To Outsourcing

American Banker
Monday, June 8, 2015

Amidst growing pressure towards more robust risk-management procedures, many community banks are facing difficult decisions when it comes to choosing when to use outsourced labor and when to increase their own staff to handle risk-management tasks. Outsourcing risk-management tasks such as cybersecurity can be tempting for small banks because of the expenses associated with hiring experts. But outsourcing can also carry risks related to managing the vendor relationship and monitoring the quality of work. Regulators have also been paying close attention to banks' oversight of vendor relationships. Federal Reserve Board Gov. Daniel Tarullo cautioned in a recent speech that outsourcing to vendors can increase risk by removing functions from the bank’s control.