This article focuses on the key requirements of the Basel III proposals. It highlights key issues uncovered during the financial crisis, delineates measures introduced to prevent the repeat of the issues, and outlines the impact on the financial industry and larger economy on the whole. The paper then takes a deep-dive into the impact of the new regulations on data and technology systems and the challenges firms face in re-engineering their data and IT systems. Finally, it offers a solution to these challenges.

1. View Point
Basel III Is Here
Introduced to strengthen the banking system, Basel III regulations
require greater cooperation and transparency from financial institutions
What are the implications for your business?
Amit Patni, CFA, FRM
Abstract
This article focuses on the key requirements of the Basel III proposals. It highlights
key issues uncovered during the financial crisis, delineates measures introduced to
prevent the repeat of the issues, and outlines the impact on the financial industry
and larger economy on the whole. The paper then takes a deep-dive into the
impact of the new regulations on data and technology systems and the challenges
firms face in re-engineering their data and IT systems. Finally, it offers a solution
to these challenges.
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2. An extensive effort is underway to strengthen the financial sector and make banks
and other institutions more resilient in the face of unexpected stress. The hope is that
Basel III
any future crisis will not lead to governments again being forced to spend billions
of dollars of taxpayer’s money to save the banking system. Regulatory requirements
Is Here included in the Basel III proposals have been introduced to help facilitate this
overhaul. Nonetheless, much is still being debated in the industry. Regulators are
moving across unknown ground as the industry comes to grips with the difficulties
of assessing the potential outcomes of the new regulations.
Basel III Impact Overview
Basel III is a paradigm shift that is rapidly changing risk management practices, the regulatory landscape, and
capital adequacy principles for the financial industry. Broadly speaking, Basel III will have a significant impact
on three key areas:
Business Practices • Capital Management • Financial Disclosure
• Liquidity Management • Leverage Ratios
• New Data Requirements • Data Accessibility
• Data Integration • Data Analysis
Technology &
• Advanced Analytics • Risk Management
Systems • Reconciliation Systems • Communications
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3. The new regulations aim to strengthen the global financial system by implementing initiatives
designed to:
• Strengthen bank-level, or micro-prudential regulations, which will help raise the
resilience of individual banking institutions during periods of stress.
• Strengthen system-wide, or macro-prudential regulations, addressing risks that can
build up across the banking sector and broader economies because of the cyclical
nature and interconnectedness of the global financial industry.
• Strengthen global quality and quantity capital rules with the goal of promoting a more
Basel III resilient banking sector.
Goals • Strengthen short- and long-term liquidity coverage and balance sheet funding for the
global banking system.
• Constrain excess leverage in the banking system by introducing a leverage ratio
requirement as a backstop measure to risk-based capital rules.
• Reduce interconnectedness and cyclical gyrations to prevent the risk of spillover from
the financial sector to the wider economy while addressing the lessons learned from
the financial crisis. This includes introducing counter-cyclical capital, contingent
convertible capital, and “systemically important financial institutions” akin to “too-
big-to-fail” provisions.
• Improve risk coverage and expand disclosure requirements for the banking system.
This includes introducing better counterparty credit risk measures with stressed
conditions, better risk weights for central counterparty use, and enhanced counterparty
valuation adjustment requirements.
Implications for Management of Data, Technology and Operations
Financial industry players will likely incur higher regulatory compliance costs as they try to decipher and implement a multitude of
Basel III rules issued by regulatory bodies. Basel III impacts all areas of the firm and requires a holistic-approach to data, technology
and operations management. Some of the major focus areas of Basel III include:
• Consistent data sourcing and reconciliation: Systems need to be based on common reference data to drive market, credit, and
liquidity risk including risk-weighed-assets and regulatory and economic capital.
• Liquidity management: Systems need to monitor intra-day liquidity and require granular data to capture and forecast short-term
liquidity coverage ratios and long-term net stable funding ratios.
• Consistent stress testing: Create a system with common risk factors across market, credit, and liquidity risk to cover the various
supervisory stress-testing scenarios including margin requirements, cash-flow generation and back-testing needs.
• Enhanced collateral systems: Basel III proposes forward looking (ex-ante) provisions to answer issues related to counterparty
valuation adjustment (CVA) and wrong-way risks. Systems need to develop capabilities to capture pro-forma data into models
and develop methodologies to incorporate risk weights and mitigate the effect of central clearinghouse counterparties such as
national stock exchanges.
• Consistent risk-weighted-asset and capital calculation: IT systems should share common models and provide consistent measures
across risk types including cash flow, asset-liability management, liquidity management, and counterparty credit risk management.
• Integrated reporting: IT systems should provide a consistent view across the enterprise to show the impact of different types of
risks and associated functional-, portfolio-, and enterprise-level reporting.
• System flexibility, automation and scalability: Systems should be able to handle large volumes of data and automate enterprise-
wide runs while allowing for interactive “what-if” analysis at the portfolio level. As firms assess the impact of new regulations
and change their business strategy, it is imperative that systems be flexible.
• Operational improvements: Although much focus is on Pillar 1 Capital, liquidity and leverage management, Basel III presents
a unique opportunity to streamline business and operational processes including training of key staff and senior management.
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4. Already Basel II Compliant? Take Note of these Basel III Updates
In many cases, Basel II compliant firms can use their existing infrastructure and processes to comply with Basel III proposals with
minimal additional expenses. There are exceptions, however, and Basel III requires additional compliance measures in the following
notable areas:
Regulation Subject Compliance Measures
Development of liquidity ratios Develop methodology to capture key business, data, and technical requirements to create,
validate, and back-test short-term liquidity coverage and long-term net stable funding ratios.
Development of leverage ratios Formulate leverage ratios which are risk-invariant and act as a backstop measure.
Forecast of counterparty credit risk Create capabilities to capture forward-looking pro-forma data into models. Basel III proposes forward
looking (ex-ante) provisions to help clarify issues related to CCR, CVA, and wrong-way risks.
Use of central clearinghouse Build methodologies to incorporate risk weights and the mitigating effects of CCC.
counterparties (CCC)
Use of external ratings Firms need to revisit their standardized and A-IRB approaches to measure credit and market
risk that rely on external ratings and improve their internal rating methodologies and RWA and
capital calculations.
Infosys’ Recommendations for the Current Regulatory Outlook
Infosys has a series of recommendations for companies looking to comply with these regulatory changes, and more importantly,
improve their businesses. These recommendations are intended to improve key focus areas like data reconciliation, liquidity and
leverage management, risk coverage, risk modeling, and operational and process improvements.
Data Reconciliation
• Consistent data sourcing and reconciliation are critical. Systems need to be based on common reference data to drive market,
credit, operational and liquidity risk for both regulatory and economic capital.
• Systems should have the ability to reconcile data across different risk categories. Position and counterparty, obligor and facility
data should be driven from a single source that is the ‘truth’ version for the firm.
• A single data load with all the attributes required for market, counterparty credit risk (CCR), risk-weighted assets (RWA), economic
capital and liquidity risk should be extracted from source systems and reconciled in the central data-warehouse systems.
Diagram A outlines a sample Basel II and III end-to-end system architecture.
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5. Liquidity and Leverage Management Risk Modeling, Capital Calculations and Reporting
• Firms need to develop methodology to capture key business, • For modeling, systems should share common models and
data and technical requirements to develop, validate and provide consistent measures across risk types including cash
back-test the new liquidity ratios. flow, asset-liability management, liquidity management, and
counterparty credit risk management.
• Systems need to monitor 30-day liquidity and require granular
data to capture and forecast short-term liquidity coverage • For capital calculations, using consistent data and models
ratios (LCR) and long-term net stable funding ratios (NSFR). allow the business line user to break down the differences
between regulatory and economic capital into sources of
• Cash flow generation for liquidity risk should also leverage
risk, such as name concentration, sector concentration and
the cash flow generation routines that should be common
migration risk. An economic capital model allows the user
to the risk and finance system including the impact to asset
to configure economic capital calculations under multiple
liability management systems.
assumptions.
• Systems need to understand the implications of leverage ratio
• IT systems should provide a clear view of the impact of
requirements on capital and the asset relationship loop and
different types of risks and associated functional-level,
be able to adjust the capital and asset base to satisfy leverage
portfolio-level and enterprise-level reporting.
requirements as set by firm strategy.
• Solutions should produce reports required internally (Pillar
• Systems should be able to load key risk systems with common
2) and externally (Pillar 3, disclosure reports and regulatory
risk factors to enable consistent stress testing across markets,
reports).
credit and liquidity risks and look at the impact on its capital,
asset and leverage.
Operational and Process Improvements
Risk Coverage – Counterparty Credit Risk, Stress Testing and • Although much focus is on Pillar 1 capital and liquidity/
Collateral Management Systems leverage management, Basel III presents a unique opportunity
to streamline firms’ business processes and improve their
• Basel III proposes forward looking (ex-ante) provisions to
operational efficiency and effectiveness.
answer issues related to CCR, CVA and wrong-way risks in
stressed conditions. Firms need to develop capabilities to • Program governance is a key to a successful implementation.
capture forward looking pro-forma data into the models. Firms should take a coordinated approach among the different
functional, technical and operating units and departments
• Firms need to develop methodologies to incorporate risk
such as risk, finance, IT and the affected LOBs.
weights and the mitigating effect of central clearinghouse
counterparties. • Firms should automate enterprise-wide runs for modeling and
reporting purposed while allowing for interactive “what-if”
• Firms need to develop the specification of the new
analysis at the portfolio level.
requirements for trading book positions and within the
counterparty credit risk framework (e.g. credit valuation • As firms assess the impact of new regulations and change
adjustments). their business strategy, the need for systems to be flexible is an
imperative so the firm can quickly adapt with new regulatory
• The system must be driven with common risk factors
paradigm.
across market, credit and liquidity risk to cover the various
supervisory stress-testing scenarios including margin
requirements, cash flow and back testing needs.
• Systems need to capture new regulatory requirements (e.g.
stress testing, limit system and risk quantification).
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6. Infosys Has the Experience to Help
Clients Prepare For and Capitalize On
Basel III Opportunities
Infosys has the experience and domain expertise to navigate through the changes and help
clients achieve goals beyond just regulatory compliance. Infosys brings a unique combination
of qualifications and experiences to regulatory compliance and Basel II and Basel III initiatives.
Our team has direct experience with large financial institutions’ operating environments, data
and technology systems, and risk and capital. We also have deep experience implementing the
Basel framework and have regulatory experts who understand the implications of regulatory
rules on firms.
Infosys provides end-to-end solutions that help firms achieve their Basel III goals through
project management, business requirements, functional and technical architecture, model
development and validation, and capital calculation and reporting.
Infosys has undertaken major projects for financial services firms, helping them in areas
including:
• “As-is” / “to-be” assessment and regulatory impact analysis
• Model development and validation
• Basel II initiatives in areas of credit, market and operational risk
• ICAAP and liquidity planning
• Program management – people, process, technology and control frameworks
• Stress-testing and back-testing
• Project management office (PMO)
• Data, systems, technology architecture and management
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7. About the Author
Amit Patni, CFA, FRM
Amit Patni is a Principal in the Risk and Compliance practice at Infosys with 12 years of experience in implementing
large scale projects in risk management/Basel initiatives for various banking and capital markets participants.
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8. About Infosys
Many of the world's most successful organizations rely on
Infosys to deliver measurable business value. Infosys
provides business consulting, technology, engineering and
outsourcing services to help clients in over 30 countries
build tomorrow's enterprise.
For more information about Infosys (NASDAQ:INFY),
For more information, contact askus@infosys.com visit www.infosys.com.
© 2012 Infosys Limited, Bangalore, India. Infosys believes the information in this publication is accurate as of its publication date; such information is subject to change without notice. Infosys acknowledges the proprietary rights of the
trademarks and product names of other companies mentioned in this document.
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