There are complex financial transactions involved in each bank’s fraud. In plain English (<link is hidden> non-technical), briefly explain 1) LIBOR and its importance to Barclay’s business and 2) Delta One’s trading activity and its importance to SocGen. This will likely involve some outside research! Pretend you’re explaining these to your 10-year old self.
What were the similarities and differences of these two cases that stood out to you? Which did you find most troubling and why?
Put on your Internal Auditor superhero cape and explain to the Board of Directors what basic risk management principles broke down and what corrective actions you’d recommend.
You are in Internal Audit at Barclay’s and have been asked to lead an investigation into whether Bob Diamond was culpable in the LIBOR scandal. How would you and the team make a determination of whether he was culpable? (HINT: Consider what information sources you would use and why.)
Do you think Internal Audit bears any responsibility for the frauds going undetected for so long in either case? Why or why not? (HINT: Use your resources – IPPF standards, KnowledgeLeader, other reliable sources)
Looking at each element in the COSO Control Framework (Control Environment, Risk Assessment, Control Activities, etc.), describe how each is important in managing risks associated with complex trading activities like those described in these two cases.