European Financial Services Industry Overview

With the increasing cost of compliance, companies in the financial services industry have started partnering with vendors to streamline and enhance efficiencies. This has helped companies to innovate and boost efficiency but at the same time increased risk-related incidents manifold. Our experience with clients shows that risk strategies in the financial services industry remain inadequate. Around 90% of companies have suffered third party incidents and they feel the need for effective risk mitigation strategies.

Business Challenges Faced 

The client, one of Europe’s fastest-growing companies in the financial services industry performed random and unscheduled process audits to ensure that industry, corporate and legal responsibilities are consistently being met. A random audit of procurement contract processes revealed the areas of improvement. The audit determined that the organization lacked a system to reduce risk and three lines of defense (3LD) goals. There was no segmentation of vendors across the entire supply chain and the teams lacked the visibility to identify potential problems. Operational silos and the lack of a central repository to capture and coordinate vendor contracts were further increasing the chances of compliance variations.

Inability to identify third-party risks can lead to operational disruptions for companies in the financial services industry. Request a free proposal to access our tailor-made supplier risk management solutions.

Our Research Approach 

Recognizing the business needs of the organization, the financial services industry experts offered an innovative supplier management solution to resolve 3LD challenges. They developed a strategy to scale the risk management process that included the supplier end of the workflow. Our experts identified companies that could automate risk assessment capabilities through a unified data set and advanced risk modeling.

With a 360-degree view of risk across all supplier relationships, the client was able to engage with suppliers more effectively and maximize protection for the audit group. Moreover, the insights into the financial services industry enabled the client to nurture long-term relationships with strategic suppliers and build detailed knowledge about how they operate. A centralized system for supplier data that all stakeholders can easily tap into was created with a single repository to encode risk best practices into a specific line of business workflows. 

Engagement Outcome

The comprehensive insights into the financial services industry and the risks associated with suppliers helped the client to gain suppliers’ information with visibility to all and reduce fatigue from repeated assessment requests. The solution offered also helped the client to trace audit trails, improve accuracy, and reduce third party risks by 70% in the past 6-months.

Gaining accurate market insights and engaging with potential suppliers is crucial for companies in the financial services industry to trace audit trails and reduce supplier risks. Request a free demo to access our web-based procurement platform and gain reports across 100+ categories. 

Ways to Mitigate Supplier Risks in the Financial Services Industry

• Develop a strategy that could improve the risk management process while aligning people and technology.
• Enhance collaboration with suppliers and provide suppliers a place to update their information with visibility to all.
• Monitor large third-party data ecosystems and gain real-time intelligence.