5.4 Role of the risk committee

Where established, the risk committee should at least:

• a. advise and support the management body in its supervisory function regarding the monitoring of the institution ’s overall actual and future risk strategy and risk appetite, taking into account all types of risks, to ensure that they are in line with the business strategy, objectives, corporate culture and values of the institution;
• b. assist the management body in its supervisory function in overseeing the implementation of the institution ’s risk strategy and the corresponding limits set;
• c. oversee the implementation of the strategies for capital and liquidity management as well as for all other relevant risks of an institution, such as market, credit, operational (including legal and IT risks), and reputational risks, in order to assess their adequacy against the approved risk strategy and risk appetite;
• d. provide the management body in its supervisory function with recommendations on necessary adjustments to the risk strategy resulting from, inter alia, changes in the business model of the institution, market developments or recommendations made by the risk management function;
• e. provide advice on the appointment of external consultants that the supervisory function may decide to engage for advice or support;
• f. review a number of possible scenarios, including stressed scenarios, to assess how the institution ’s risk profile would react to external and internal events;
• g. oversee the alignment between all material financial products and services offered to clients and the business model and risk strategy of the institution²⁵ . The risk committee should assess the risks associated with the offered financial products and services and take into account the alignment between the prices assigned to and the profits gained from those products and services; and
• h. assess the recommendations of internal or external auditors and follow up on the appropriate implementation of measures taken.

²⁵ See also the EBA guidelines on product oversight and governance arrangements for retail banking products, available at http://www.eba.europa.eu/regulation-and-policy/consumer-protection-and-financial-innovation/guidelines-on-product-oversight-and-governance-arrangements-for-retail-banking-products.

The risk committee should collaborate with other committees whose activities may have an impact on the risk strategy (e.g. audit and remuneration committees) and regularly communicate with the institution ’s internal control functions , in particular the risk management function.

When established, the risk committee must, without prejudice to the tasks of the remuneration committee, examine whether incentives provided by the remuneration policies and practices take into consideration the institution ’s risk, capital and liquidity and the likelihood and timing of earnings.