Most industries have undergone regulatory overhauls over the past century; by my observation, none have done so more rigorously than the financial industry, which sometimes falls short of optimum self-regulation. Yet when you, as a business owner, build a culture that imposes self-regulation, you can reduce risk and build trust with your customers while preventing future losses.

Unfortunately, as the CEO of a consulting firm specializing in risk and regulation, I've noticed that much of the regulation that makes its way into policy is responsive. It often seems to follow major misconduct cases that caught the attention of government agencies and the public at large. In fact, according to a 2016 Money article, trust has never been more lacking in the financial sector, and 2018 Edelman data suggested that financial services is the least trusted sector of those studied. That’s why I believe foresight is the key to maintaining your brand and avoiding regulatory burdens. Here's how to cultivate that foresight for your financial firm by using a conduct risk framework.  

Make positive changes to your message now. 

From my perspective, the public, private and governmental lack of trust in the financial industry isn’t something new. Still, too many institutions lag behind in building the necessary framework to reduce conduct risk from within. I believe the financial industry is on track to maintain its negative reputation unless there are concerted high-profile changes. 

Change your message and separate yourself from this trend by taking positive steps to build a conduct risk framework. Let your customers, employees, board, stockholders, government regulators and the general public know about the positive steps you’re taking to ensure the safety of your services. Through positive messaging channels, you can let people know that your firm places enormous value on being a good steward.

See full article here https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesfinancecouncil/2018/08/31/how-to-improve-the-culture-of-your-firm-with-a-conduct-risk-framework/#6fa581cd40ab