CIBN, RIMAN Charge Certified Risk Managers On New Technologies

The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria  (CIBN) and Risk Management Association of Nigeria (RIMAN) have inducted Certified Risk Managers who qualified in 2021, calling organisations to adopt new technologies to reach broader customer base.

The Certified Risk Manager Certification programme was designed in recognition of the importance of Risk Management and the need to build the capacity of Risk Management Professionals to enable them effectively to address current and emerging Risk Management Issues, whilst giving special attention to local content.

The collaboration which started in 2015 has produced 116 CRMs, 37 of which were inducted this year having fulfilled all the necessary requirements for Induction.

Speaking at the 5th CRM Induction Ceremony, the President/Chairman of Council, CIBN, Ken Opara, Ph. D, FCIB, observed that this year marks the 7th year of the CIBN/RIMAN collaboration which has been very fruitful so far.

He said further that during the Pandemic, banks and other businesses leveraged technological advancements, particularly digital channels to optimize operations. Remote working came to the fore and the digital platforms became the melting pot. This new wave according to Dr. Opara, led to heightened risks of cybersecurity issues such as data breaches/theft, phishing emails, and hacking/cyber-attacks, adding that in 2021 Accenture’s report, security attacks on businesses increased by 31 per cent between 2020 and 2021.

The Cybersecurity Almanac, 2021 noted that the cost of cybercrimes will likely hit $10.5 trillion by the year 2025 while Identified fraud losses in 2021 totaled $56 billion (Javelin Strategy & Research, 2021).

In his remarks, Dr. Ezekeil Oseni, President, RIMAN, said that the theme for this year’s induction, ‘E nterprise Risk Management and Organisational Efficiency’ was deliberately chosen in recognition of the fact that risk management is important in every business venture. Since the global financial crises and the COVID-19 pandemic, risk management has been more on the centre stage.