Compliance Assignments on a Financial Service Industry In Bahrain As A Jurisdiction

Assignment One

Please read through the following guidance notes before writing your assignment.

Submitting your assignment

1. Please collate your assignment as a single document in a Microsoft Word format

2. Save the assignment as your candidate ID number

3. All marking is anonymous, which means your name should not appear on your work

4. You must state which region/jurisdiction you are from in the header of each page

5. You must ensure that all of your work is appropriately referenced. WE accept either footnote or Harvard style referencing.

6. Penalties will be applied to those candidates who submit their assignment after the due date

Word count

7. The total word limit for this assignment is 3,500 words. This includes all footnotes, in-text references and appendices but excludes any bibliography, reference page or contents page. N.B. Appendices Tables/document should only be used in exceptional circumstances cases and should consist of only brief extracts or tables

8. The amount/number of words per question should reflect the number of marks allocated.

9. Penalties will be applied for excessive overall word count

10. When submitting your assignment you have responsibility for ensuring that:

a. it is entirely your own work, except where you have given fully-documented references to the work of others.

b. the material contained in your assignment has not previously been submitted for assessment in any formal course of study.

11. All assignments are screened using Turnitin check detection software that checks for passages found elsewhere on the internet, in books and journals or in work previously submitted.

12. The ICA has issued guidelines on academic malpractice to help clarify for you what will be considered as constituting these offences and to indicate the nature of the penalties that may be imposed where they occur.

Your Assignment Question Is On the Next Page

All questions can be answered in relation to a jurisdiction with which you are familiar. Answer all questions.

Section A
This section contains four questions, each worth 10 marks. Candidates should answer all questions.

Question 1 (10 marks)
Describe how, as the compliance officer of a firm in a jurisdiction and sector of your choice, you would prepare for and manage a regulatory inspection visit. In your answer you should highlight, through the inclusion of illustrative examples, the potential consequences for the firm if this is not managed appropriately.

Question 2 (10 marks)

There are many skills required by a compliance officer in order to successfully undertake their broad range of activities. Select one of these that you believe to be the single most important skill and critically evaluate this belief, using the example of a senior compliance role in a sector and jurisdiction of your choice.

Question 3 (10 marks)

With reference to any recent developments with which you are familiar, assess how increased focus on corporate governance issues has impacted upon a sector and jurisdiction of your choice. Illustrate your answer with appropriate examples.

Question 4 (10 marks)

Consumer protection is one of the central regulatory objectives. Discuss, through the use of relevant examples or illustrations, what impact failings in this regulatory objective could have on achievement of the other central regulatory objectives and on the regulatory environment overall if these were found to be widespread.

Section B

This Section Contains Three Questions, Each Worth 20 Marks. Candidates Should Answer All Questions.

Question 5 (20 marks)

With reference to a jurisdiction and regulated sector of your choice, discuss why and how regulation has evolved over recent years (for example, from a mainly rules-based approach to a more principles-based, outcome-focused regime). Show, with the appropriate use of a relevant example, how this has impacted upon the regulation of a firm of your choice from a practical perspective.

Question 6 (20 marks)

Research and evaluate two of the key initiatives that have been implemented in a jurisdiction of your choice as a consequence of the global financial crisis of 2008. Based on your research and evaluation, comment upon their actual or potential effectiveness, supporting your answer with appropriate illustrative examples.

Question 7 (20 marks)

The values of ethics and integrity are essential elements of any compliance framework and embedding these within the framework can have a significant positive impact upon the culture of the organisation. The embedding of such values and their manifestation within the organisation also impacts on the organisation’s relationship with its regulator.

Consider the views expressed in the above statement and discuss these in the context of their relevance for the firm’s relationship with its regulator(s), supporting your views with appropriate examples.