Tough challenges ahead, says Citi head

BOSTON – Industry executives outlined thorny problems that must be resolved over the coming months, at a conference held in Boston by the Federal Reserve and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston in mid-May.

Jay Newberry, head of operational risk for New York-based Citigroup, outlined several areas of concern to large internationally-active banks with the advanced measurement approach (AMA) framework in the US. The first item on his list was "an appropriate definition of ‘significance’". Firms at the event noted repeatedly that an overly burdensome definition of "significance" by regulators could substantially increase the cost of implementing an AMA and be of marginal value, as smaller subsidiaries