Given their business models, financial institutions are complex entities. In this series of masterclasses, the experts will share their insights on how the different financial institutions may be resolved and transferred to a third-party acquirer, especially under times of stress, the considerations and challenges. A well-considered strategy brought by the resolution planning process could potentially help financial institutions unlock value even during business-as-usual through the financial institution’s enhanced governance, improved operational efficiency, and better risk management and monitoring.

While mergers and acquisitions transactions and transfer of business schemes may have been around in the financial industry, the transfer of a financial institution to another entity or acquirer during times of distress may be a challenging and complex exercise. Financial intermediary firms serve important functions in the economy and they often form part of a complex group of entities which are closely interconnected with each others. The degree of interconnectedness and interdependencies will have an impact on the resolvability of the firm. In this session, we hear from real-life practitioners on challenges faced by banks in undertaking separability assessment as part of the resolution planning and resolvability process.

Under a business environment marked by digitisation, the expert will share his insights on the role of information technology in a merger and acquisition transaction prior to, during, and post a resolution. How does a firm undertake an IT due diligence during times of distress and what are the issues and challenges? We will also find out the information required for IT due diligence as well as the common errors that may affect pricing and transactions. How does a firm deal with cybersecurity concerns and how do they impact the resolution of a financial institution?