This Credit Risk Assessment course gives participants a comprehensive overview of the key concepts and methodologies in understanding the drivers of credit risk, modelling tools used for the measurement of credit risk, and current best practice in credit risk management techniques.
The course focuses on the actual practice of credit risk assessment within financial institutions as well as on the quantitative and methodological tools and procedures that are at the cutting edge of measuring, mitigating and managing credit risk.
Treatment of credit risk has shifted greatly since the global financial crisis of 2008. Prior to then, it was considered almost inconceivable that major investment banks and global insurers could default and create a systemic credit and liquidity crisis. Since the crisis, there has been a universal re-thinking of most aspects of legacy risk management techniques. Financial regulators and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision have placed significant emphasis on the need for innovative and more robust methods of modelling financial stress and the kinds of credit market deterioration that was witnessed during the crisis.
Course Methodology
This course utilizes Excel models for credit analysis, individual calculation exercises, team activities and plenary discussion.
Course Objectives
By the end of the course, participants will be able to:
Identify the key elements of credit risk
Analyze the micro-financial drivers of credit risk and macro-economic factors which impact system-wide credit risk
Explain modelling techniques for assessing credit risk
Demonstrate proficiency with different methods and tools for credit scoring
Demonstrate the usage and risks of credit derivatives
Apply collateral management techniques to credit derivatives exposures
Target Audience
This course is beneficial for banking personnel in all areas of credit risk. Others who will benefit include, but are not limited to, asset allocators, portfolio strategists, sovereign wealth fund managers and research staff, risk managers/controllers, private investors and senior back office personnel.
The course is also valuable for those interested in credit modelling and those engaged in compliance with all applicable regulations regarding credit risk in financial institutions.
Target Competencies
Credit risk modelling
Assessment of credit requests
Assessment of funding loans and credit facilities
Compliance with all regulations regarding credit
Management of a credit committee and risk committee
Course Outline
Fundamentals of Credit Risk
The key macro and micro financial concepts behind, and drivers of, credit risk
Measurement of credit risk and adverse outcomes
Assessing credit risk and default probability of loan portfolios
Key determinants for managing credit risk:
Probability of default (PD)
Exposure at default (EAD)
Loss given default (LGD)
Credit migration and transition matrices
Fundamental analysis of financial statements, key ratios, qualitative characteristics of the balance sheet
Off balance sheet and contingent credit risk
Market-based approaches, bond spreads, swap rates
Counter party credit risk
Credit scoring, credit risk modelling, risk profiling and assessing creditworthiness
Credit Ratings Methodologies and Application
Review of ratings classifications systems of the major Credit Ratings Agencies (CRAs)
The principal credit ratings agencies – Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, Fitch
Overview of the ratings methodologies – issuer analysis, historical data, business cycles
Commercial paper ratings
Sovereign ratings – approach to developed markets and emerging markets
Conflicts of interest - representing credit issuers but designed to protect credit purchasers
Why did the CRAs perform so poorly in the rating of collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) and other derivatives?
Ratings migration matrices – use by banks in determining credit risk value at risk (VaR)
Impact of upgrades/downgrades on market perceptions of creditworthiness
Dodd-Frank Act de-emphasis on reliance by financial firms on external ratings
Capital Charges and Accounting Principles
Review of the distinction between the banking book and the trading book
Basel III attempts to address regulatory arbitrage
Treatment of securitizations and off-balance sheet exposures
Available for Sale issues – impacts on liquidity, high-quality liquid assets (HQLA), rigidity of balance sheets
Detailed examination of IFRS 9 – implementation timetable, further revisions?
Recognition of expected losses and early warning of asset impairment
Amortized cost – held to maturity requirements
Fair value through other comprehensive income (FVOCI)
Fair value through profit or loss (FVPL)
Counter-Party Credit Risk
Examine the various facets of credit risk which hinge on losses sustained from failure of an obligor to honour contractual obligations
Distinguish the separate components of credit risk:
Probability of default by obligor – how reliably can it be estimated?
Probability of downgrade or widening credit spreads of counter party
Recovery rate – what percentage of obligation can be recovered after default?
Credit exposure – estimating loss magnitude in relation to capital buffers
Determination of a credit default event, ISDA Master Agreement, Credit Support Annex
Understand the concepts of credit rating and scoring and critical examination of how useful such techniques are for determining actual risk of default?
New components in the Basel III framework for addressing issues related to default and deterioration of the credit quality of counter parties
Credit Valuation Adjustment (CVA) and Debt Valuation Adjustment (DVA)
Explanation of key concepts of Expected Exposure (EE), Expected Positive Exposure (EPE), Wrong Way Risk (WWR)
Measuring Credit Risk and Techniques for Credit Risk Modelling
Credit Metrics, credit scoring and credit rating systems
Quantitative modelling of credit risk using stochastic processes
Estimating probability of default – KMV Model, distance to default techniques
Explain how debt and equity can be understood as options on the firm
Techniques for modeling default risk of CDO’s, CMO’s and other structured vehicles
Lessons from SIVs and other off-balance sheet financing on credit risk management
Adapting VaR measures to include a metric for default value at risk
Credit Migration matrices - scaling over different time frames
Integrating Credit VaR (CVaR) and Market VaR
Portfolio CVaR – joint probabilities of default – copula techniques
Techniques for estimating LGD and recovery rates
Sovereign Credit Risk
Principal factors used to determine creditworthiness of a sovereign
Issues relating to sovereign bonds under different jurisdictional frameworks
Deterioration in public balance sheets –high debt/GDP ratios
Linkage between sovereign risk and risks to local banking system
Macro-economic drivers of ratings - global imbalances, surplus/deficit nations
Role of sovereign Credit Default Swap (CDS) market – is it still vital or declining?
Sovereign debt re-structuring- bail outs/bail-ins
Protection to different stakeholders – seniority of claims, preferred status of central banks
Collective Action Clauses (CACs)
Sovereign domino thesis and financial contagion
Stress Testing Methods, Benefits and Limitations
Overview of sensitivity of credit to market risk, interest rate risk, systemic risk
Explanation of the techniques for conducting stress tests
Back testing using historical returns
Stress testing using hypothetical returns
Explanation of Principal Components Analysis
Sizes of historical samples – are they sufficiently large to include wide variety of conditions?
Benefits of more loosely coupled systems as less fragile.
Interpreting Credit Related Market Data
Monitoring government bond yields and changes to the term structure of interest rates for US dollar, euro, sterling, and yen
Theories of the yield curve
Liquidity premium
Safe-haven premium
Credit spreads for investment grade and high yield instruments relative to government issue and inter-bank rates
Over Treasuries, over bunds, over gilts
SOFR, SONIA, ESTER, overnight indexed swap (OIS), Euro Overnight Index Average (Eonia)
Option Adjusted Spreads (OAS)
Credit Default Swap (CDS) rates – estimation of probabilities of default