MANAGING (OR NOT) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

A big part of developing a robust culture and conduct patterns in banks these days is related to managing conflicts of interest.  A case in point appears to be relating to the recent ousting of CEO Michael Wolf at Swedbank. Its shares slid 6% in the already poor market for banking shares this week when the Swedbank board of directors asked its CEO to step down due to not actively managing conflicts of interest within the bank, as reported by the WSJ.  The chairman of the bank is quoted as saying that as CEO Wolf could have put a stop to certain real estate related activities and his enforcement of internal regulations was weak. Welcome to the increasingly complicated game of banking twister where market led changes, new regulations and even cultural change appears to be evolving at a rapid pace.

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