...Barings bank, was founded in London, UK, in 1763 as a merchant bank. During 80’s it started to have big international success. And in 1995 it collapsed because of general manager in charge of setting up the trading operations in Singapore (Mr. Leeson). The whole story started when Mr. Leeson found out that there was an error, when one of his phone clerks sold the contracts rather than bought them. That day the loss was calculated to be 20,000 Pounds. The only thing he could do was to close the deal only in the upcoming Monday. Because of a busy day on Monday, Mr. Leeson forgot and now this was a problem that could affect not only the clerk but also him. So, he decided to hide this error permanently in an account 88888, but after some days this error could cost the firm 60,000 Pounds so this became a very serious problem that could cause Mr. Lesson troubles with his position in the company and also affect his bonuses (which until now were really high). So he decided to hide this error, and lots of others made by him or his team, which they reached the loss of almost 1 billion dollars. Why did Mr. Leeson behave that way? While reading the case, you can understand that one of Mr. Leeson’s ambitions was to become a floor trader. When he was sent to Singapore, his position was to control both settlement and floor operations and this was not a common practice for Bearings. This way he could control the firm’s operations and also in the same time work in the back office, which...
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...Controls and the Collapse of Barings Bank __________________________________________________________________________________________ Commodities Trading: Nick Leeson, Internal Controls and the Collapse of Barings Bank By Sam Bhugaloo Page 1 of 21 Commodities Trading: Nick Leeson, Internal Controls and the Collapse of Barings Bank __________________________________________________________________________________________ Table of Content Introduction.................................................................................................................................3 Background and Overview… ......................................................................………… ........ .....4 Barings Bank...............................................................................................................................5 Internal Controls at Barings Bank.............................................................................................13 Lessons Learned and Steps Taken to Preclude Recurrences . ..................................................15 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................18 References.................................................................................................................................20 Page 2 of 21 Commodities Trading: Nick Leeson, Internal Controls and the Collapse of Barings Bank ______________...
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...Controls and the Collapse of Barings Bank __________________________________________________________________________________________ Commodities Trading: Nick Leeson, Internal Controls and the Collapse of Barings Bank By Sam Bhugaloo Page 1 of 21 Commodities Trading: Nick Leeson, Internal Controls and the Collapse of Barings Bank __________________________________________________________________________________________ Table of Content Introduction.................................................................................................................................3 Background and Overview… ......................................................................………… ........ .....4 Barings Bank...............................................................................................................................5 Internal Controls at Barings Bank.............................................................................................13 Lessons Learned and Steps Taken to Preclude Recurrences . ..................................................15 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................18 References.................................................................................................................................20 Page 2 of 21 Commodities Trading: Nick Leeson, Internal Controls and the Collapse of Barings Bank ______________...
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...________________________________________________________________________ BARINGS – A CASE STUDY IN RISK MANAGEMENT AND INTERNAL CONTROLS Author: Hubert Edwards September 2004 In 1995 Britain’s oldest merchant bank of two hundred years came to a dramatic and fatal halt. The bank was Barings. The demise of the bank was brought about as a result of the actions of a derivative trader, Nick Leeson, stationed in Singapore. Without a careful and considered review one may be tempted to conclude that the blame rests solely at his door step. The analytical mind, may however ask: how is it possible that this one man was able to cripple a financial giant? What was the role of senior management in this situation and did they contribute to the demise? How effective were the internal control systems and was the Singapore operations managed effectively? The answer to these and similar questions would be indeed interesting and insightful in analyzing the debacle that Baring proved to be. Reported on very widely in the nineteennineties, this bank collapse still holds significant lessons for those involved in the management of financial institutions. The objective here is not to prove definitively the exact cause of the collapse but to show, by way of a very narrow discussion, how certain deficiencies in internal controls and risk management systems impacted the bank and ultimately led to its collapse. When Barings collapsed it had a capital of approximately $600 million. Contrast...
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...[pic] Case Analysis The COLLAPSE OF BARING BANK (Individual Assignment) BU 041 Why Corporate Social Responsibility Matters Name: Ou Yang Ning Xiao Term: January 2012 Lecturer: Mr. Issac Leung Due Date: 29th February 2012 Words count: 2133 words TABLE OF CONTENT Executive Summary-----------------------------------------------------Page 3 Introduction-------------------------------------------------------------- Page 4 CSR Problem within the Barings Bank----------------------------- Page 5 FIVE Acts to Prevented Leeson from Destroying the Bank---- Page 7 Why SOX not Prevent the Fraud------------------------------------ Page 9 How monitor the ethical standard----------------------------------- Page 10 Conclusion---------------------------------------------------------------- Page 11 Reference----------------------------------------------------------------- Page 12 Executive Summary This report is through the case analysis about the collapse of Baring Bank, to talk about how the corporate social responsibility influences a company. Through the related CSR problems in Baring bank and trying to find what matters that the organization lack of. In addition to know more about how CSR effect the global business environment, depends on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the report talk about the five acts can possibly prevented Leeson to destroy the company. And also discuss why the SOX act is not effective which lead...
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...Financial Risk: Key Fundamentals and Case Studies Leonard Chumo, CFA, FRM Strathmore University GARP Chapter Meeting 29th July 2011 Agenda 1. Background 2. Credit Risk and the Case of Washington Mutual 3. Operational Risk and the Case of Rogue Brokers in Kenya and Barings 4. Market Risk and the Case of LTCM 5. Liquidity Risk and the Case of Northern Rock 6. Q&A BACKGROUND Main Types of Financial Risk Risk Type Definition Credit Risk The potential that a bank's borrower or counterparty will fail to meet its obligations in accordance with agreed terms. Market Risk The risk that movements in market prices will adversely affect the value of on- or off-balance sheet positions. The risk is attributable to movements in interest rates, foreign exchange (FX) rates, equity prices or prices of commodities. Operational Risk Risk of loss resulting from inadequate or failed internal processes, people and systems, or from external events. The definition includes legal risk, but excludes reputational and strategic risk. Liquidity Risk Liquidity is the ability to fund increases in assets and meet obligations as they become due. It is crucial to the ongoing viability of any organization. Source: Financial Stability Institute CREDIT RISK AND THE CASE OF WASHINGTON MUTUAL Sources of Credit Risk Apart from traditional types of loans, credit risk can also be found in a bank's: Investment portfolio ...
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...Barings Bank and Nick Leeson Introduction I would like to present the case of Barings Bank, one of the most famous histories in the world when one man led to the bankruptcy the oldest British bank. Barings collapsed on February 26, 1995, due to the activities of one trader, Nick Leeson, who lost almost $1.4 billion. The loss was caused by a large exposure to the Japanese stock market, which was achieved through the futures market. Leeson, the chief trader for Barings Futures in Singapore, had been accumulating positions in stock index futures on the Nikkei 225, a portfolio of Japanese stocks. As the market fell more than 15 percent in the first two months of 1995, Barings Futures suffered huge losses, which were made even higher due to the sale of options, which implied a bet on a stable market. As losses mounted, Leeson increased the size of the position, in a stubborn belief he was right. Finally, on 25 February 1995 he walked away, when he realized that bank was unable to make the cash payments required by the exchanges. Later, he sent a fax to his superiors, offering “sincere apologies for the predicament that I have left you in.” Nick Leeson had totally wiped out the venerable 233-year-old Baring Investment Bank, which proudly counted Queen Elizabeth as a client. He left behind huge liabilities totaling $1.4 billion, more than the entire capital and reserves of the British institution. This situation - and a similar scam at the New York branch of Japan's Daiwa Bank in October...
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...A Project on All That Glitters: The Fall of Barings Bank A CASE STUDY ON RISK MANAGEMENT AND INTERNAL CONTROLS Introduction: In 1995 Britain’s oldest merchant bank of two hundred years came to a dramatic and fatal halt. The bank was Barings. The demise of the bank was brought about as a result of the actions of a derivative trader, Nick Leeson, stationed in Singapore. Without a careful and considered review one may be tempted to conclude that the blame rests solely on Nick Leeson. But if you think with analytical mind, you will ask: how is it possible that this one man was able to cripple a financial giant? What was the role of senior management in this situation and did they contribute to the demise? How effective were the internal control systems, Risk management system and was the Singapore operations managed effectively? The answer to these and similar questions would be indeed interesting and insightful in analyzing the debacle of Baring Bank. Reported on very widely in the nineteen- nineties, this bank collapse still holds significant lessons for those involved in the management of financial institutions. The objective here is not to prove definitively the exact cause of the collapse but to show, by way of a very narrow discussion, how certain deficiencies in internal controls and risk management systems impacted the bank and ultimately led to its collapse. When Barings collapsed it had a capital of approximately $600 million. Contrast this with...
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...Derivatives Debacles Case Studies of Large Losses in Derivatives Markets Anatoli Kuprianov To avoid all mistakes in the conduct of great enterprises is beyond man’s powers. Plutarch, Lives: Fabius. ecent years have witnessed numerous accounts of derivatives-related losses on the part of established and reputable firms. These episodes have precipitated concern, and even alarm, over the recent rapid growth of derivatives markets and the dangers posed by the widespread use of such instruments. What lessons do these events hold for policymakers? Do they indicate the need for stricter government supervision of derivatives markets, or for new laws and regulations to limit the use of these instruments? A better understanding of the events surrounding recent derivatives debacles can help to answer such questions. This article presents accounts of two of the costliest and most highly publicized derivatives-related losses to date. The episodes examined involve the firms of Metallgesellschaft AG and Barings PLC. Each account begins with a review of the events leading to the derivatives-related loss in question, followed by an analysis of the factors responsible for the debacle. Both incidents raise a number of public policy questions: Can government intervention stop such incidents from happening again? Is it appropriate for the government even to try? And if so, what reforms are indicated? These issues are addressed at the end of each case study, where the lessons and public policy...
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...SESSION 2015/2016 BKAA2013 AUDITING AND ANSURANCE 1 GROUP ASSIGNMENT BARINGS COLLAPSE GROUP C PREPARED TO: DR. ROSE SHAMSIAH BT SAMSUDIN PREPAED BY: NAME | MATRIC NO. | CHAN KHAI QING | 233058 | TAN JIE YING | 233076 | YAP YEE WAN | 233152 | SUBMISSION DATE: 15 MAY 2016 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 Case Summary 1 2.0 What are Ethics? Generally, why do people act unethically? 2 3.0 Justify why is there a special need for ethical conduct in professions including those in the accounting and auditing related field? 6 4.0 Discuss how the Barings collapse serves as an example of failed internal controls and governance within organization. 13 5.0 Conclusion 20 1.0 Case Summary Nick Leeson, an employee of Barings Bank who after a successful spell working for the firm's office in Indonesia is sent to Singapore as General Manager of the Trading Floor on the SIMEX exchange. Leeson's rise as he soon becomes one of Barings' key traders. However, everything isn't as it appears — through the 88888 error account, Nick is hiding huge losses as he gambles away Baring's money with little more than the bat of an eyelid from the powers-that-be back in London. Eventually the losses mount up to well over £800 million and Nick, along with his wife Lisa, decide to leave Singapore and escape to Malaysia. Nick doesn't realise the severity of his losses until he reads in the newspaper that Barings has gone bankrupt. They then decide to return to London but Nick is arrested...
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...Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative University of New Mexico http://danielsethics.mgt.unm.edu Banking Industry Meltdown: The Ethical and Financial Risks of Derivatives INTRODUCTION The 2008–2009 global recession was caused in part by a failure of the financial industry to take appropriate responsibility for its decision to utilize risky and complex financial instruments. Corporate cultures were built on rewards for taking risks rather than rewards for creating value for stakeholders. Unfortunately, most stakeholders, including the public, regulators, and the mass media, do not always understand the nature of the financial risks taken on by banks and other institutions to generate profits. Problems in the subprime mortgage markets sounded the alarm in the 2008–2009 economic downturn. Very simply, the subprime market was created by making loans to people who normally would not qualify based on their credit ratings. The debt from these loans was often repackaged and sold to other financial institutions in order to take it off lenders’ books and reduce their exposure. When the real estate market became overheated, many people were no longer able to make the payments on their variable rate mortgages. When consumers began to default on payments, prices in the housing market dropped and the values of credit default swaps (the repackaged mortgage debt, also known as CDSs) lost significant value. The opposite was supposed to happen. CDSs were sold as a method of insuring against loss. These...
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...prestige rather than immediate financial gain. A study by BBC has revealed that the average woman lies twice a day while a man tells three lies a day. However, the lies they tell differ from each other a lot, both in essence and the results yielded. This is why we decided that the frauds and scams of the banking industry as well as their influence on other financial institutions would be quite interesting and intriguing. Let us together investigate how far a human mind can go to earn as much money and glory as we desire. Jerome Kerviel’s case-Societe Generale on the edge In January 2008, A French court sentenced former Société Générale trader Jérôme Kerviel to three years in prison for his role in one of the world's biggest-ever trading scandals and ordered him to repay his former employer €4.9 billion—a sum it would take him 180,000 years to pay at his current salary. In convicting Mr. Kerviel of breach of trust, forgery, and unauthorized computer use, the judge also handed Mr. Kerviel a lifetime trading ban. The prison sentence handed to Mr Kerviel is for five years, of which two years were suspended. Throughout the trial, Mr. Kerviel and his lawyers argued that Société Générale turned a blind eye on his illicit behavior as long as he was making money. Société Générale itself acknowledged in 2008 that it didn't have the right control systems in place to correctly supervise Mr. Kerviel. For this lack of oversight, the bank has already paid €4 million in fines to France's...
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...Case Study (Chapter 1, page 17) Question 1 What are the real problems that the customer is highlighting? Firstly, the problem that customer highlighting is automatic debiting the customer account by way of penalty. This action cause the customer has to rethink his errant financial way. The bank should having a notice or inform to their customers before debiting any penalty. This may cause many of customers that face the financial problem to fall into difficulty. Besides, the customer notices he cannot contact to employee over the time. The customers are confronted by the impersonal ever-changing, pre-recorded, faceless entity which the bank has become. The customers want to deal with a flesh and blood person but not the automated voice phone system. This impersonal conversation will make customer loss of confident about what the customer inquire. Moreover, customer will get charge for the advertising material sent by bank. It charges for $2.00 per page customer read. For the bank nominated contact, that will be billed at $5 per minute. Bank should be let the customer know early for the reading fees or ask for customer permission whether having interest about the advertising material. If not, bank should not send to them. This may causes the customer read on it unconsciously. To helping the customer, customer service should not be charge. Lastly, the problem is the automated voice phone system of the bank. The customer contact to the bank need to go through very long...
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...with a panic or a run on the banks, in which investors sell off assets or withdraw money from savings accounts with the expectation that the value of those assets will drop if they remain at a financial institution. A financial crisis can come as a result of institutions or assets being overvalued, and can be made worse by investment behavior. A rapid string of sell offs can further result in lower asset prices or more savings withdrawals. If left unchecked, the crisis can cause the economy to go down into a recession or depression. There are a number of causes for banking crisis outlined in the text, it is also said that banks are more vulnerable to failures than other companies. This is because they are more fragile than many other firms and more open contagion. There are three reasons to support this view: Low capital to assets ratios (high leverage), which provides little room for losses; Low cash to assets ration, which may require the sale of earning assets to meet deposit obligations; and High demand and short term debt to total debt (deposits) ratios (high potential for a run), which may require hurried asset sales of opaque and non-liquid earnings assets with potentially large fire-sale losses to pay off running depositors. There isn't one specific reason for bank crashes, crashes occur for a number of reasons. Reasons such as after a long calm conditions marked by fierce competition between financial institutions, long credit cycles where banks have...
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...scandals in the UK in the 90’s which resulted in the collapse of Barings Bank, due to this the Financial Services Authority changed the structure of financial regulation that consolidated regulation responsibilities. The aftermath of the financial crisis of 2007 to 2009 has drawn the financial accounting standard setting into the orbit of political processes focused on restructuring the regulation of the world’s financial markets. The crisis has ignited worldwide debate on issues of systemic risk and the role played by financial regulation in creating exacerbating the crisis. There have been proposals for how to regulate the financial markets and financial institutions should be changed to ease the potential for large scale financial meltdowns in the future. There are many aspects of the financial system under debate, including the alleged role played by financial accounting standards in deepening the trajectory of the crisis. The crisis has forced politicians, regulators and economists to scrutinise financial accounting standards and create pressure for change, which creates an opportune moment to consider how to organise the analysis of efficient regulatory choice. This paper lays out the basic arguments that have been put forth both for and against the regulation of corporate reporting. 2. The Case of Mandatory Disclosure Here the paper discusses issues related to the nature of disclosure, whether it is a case of choice or formal regulation (voluntary or mandatory)...
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