Citadele Bank has been invited to take part in an advisory group lead by Latvian Prime Minister Māris Kučinskis, using its experience and expertise to support changes and help restore the reputation of the Latvian financial sector.
The aim of the group is through collaboration support and advise the financial sector transformation process, restoring the international reputation of the Latvian financial sector as well evaluating the effect of the process on the business environment in Latvia.
Citadele Bank will be represented in the group by Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board Elizabeth Critchley and Member of the Management Board, Chief Financial Officer Johan Åkerblom.
“We are delighted to be part of the Prime Minister’s advisory group and welcome the initiative from the Government. We have been asked to join the group as one of the four largest banks in Latvia, also taking into account our experience and expertise in risk management and compliance. In our operations we observe stricter AML and compliance regulations than set by EU and Latvian legislation.
Previously we have also shared our experience with the Association of Latvian Commercial Banks when it developed proposed changes to state legislation, which was also highly rated by FinCEN representatives when they visited Riga.
Its our duty to provide our support and expertise in the advisory group created by the Prime Minister to promote the stability and restore and improve the reputation of the Latvian financial system.
We support changes to legislation to promote balanced and sustainable development of the Latvian financial system, the adoption of sustainable risk management, and the strengthening of the Latvian financial system. We are honoured to be part of a team which will provide its expertise to help the state implement changes needed as well as take the necessary actions ourselves,” says Citadele Board Member J. Åkerblom.
The advisory group is chaired by Latvian Prime Minister Māris Kučinskis. It involves the Minister of Finance, the Deputy State Secretary for Finance, the Chairman of the Management Board of the Association of Latvian Commercial Banks, and representatives of the four largest banks, which serve a total of 90% of Latvian residents, including Citadele.
For these meetings, the Prime Minister will also be able to invite representatives of Latvian and international supervisory and control institutions, as well as other international institutions, to participate.
"It is important that there is efficient, immediate exchange of information between the government, financial sector, business owners, as well as various institutions, working in order to implement change in the Latvian financial sector and renew its reputation,” emphasised M. Kučinskis in a comment to the media.