Equipping international banks operating in the UK on regulation, risk and governance

Brief

An international bank wanted to strengthen board-level understanding of the UK regulatory, governance, and risk landscape through a targeted training session tailored to its directors.

The objective was not simply to provide a regulatory update, but to enable a practical and focused discussion on the risks most material to the bank. This included evolving and emerging risks, and the implications for effective board oversight, challenge, and decision-making.

The bank required a delivery approach that balanced depth with pragmatism. while creating space for meaningful discussion, reflection and challenges among directors.

What we did

HKA designed and delivered a 90-minute remote board training session focused on the UK regulatory environment and current supervisory priorities, with a particular emphasis on governance, risk and financial crime.

The session was structured to combine insight-led presentation with facilitated discussion, enabling directors to engage directly with the issues most relevant to their oversight responsibilities.

The programme content was tailored to the areas boards most need to understand in today’s environment including:

• UK regulators and priorities
• Governance expectations
• SMCR and non-financial misconduct
• Culture and whistleblowing
• Risk management frameworks
• Financial crime

Drawing on recent enforcement and governance failures, HKA translated regulatory expectations into clear, practical board-level lessons on challenge, oversight, culture, and “reasonable steps.”

Our approach was deliberately targeted and proportionate: give the board a sharper view of what matters now, where regulatory attention is intensifying, and how directors can exercise effective and proportionate oversight without defaulting to unnecessary technical complexity.

Outcomes

The board now has a clearer, more structured understanding of the UK regulatory environment and the practical implications for governance and risk oversight and decision-making.

The session enabled directors to focus on the risks and expectations most relevant to the bank, strengthening their ability to challenge effectively and engage in more informed, risk-based discussions. It also reinforced a shared understanding of how regulatory priorities translate into day-to-day board responsibilities, particularly in areas such as financial crime, culture, and non-financial misconduct.

Importantly, the format created space for open dialogue, allowing directors to test assumptions, clarify expectations, and align on what effective oversight looks like in practice under increasing regulatory scrutiny.

• 90-minute targeted board session tailored to the Bank’s operating context and designed to be focused, proportionate and discussion-led.
• Coverage of the issues most relevant to directors, including governance, SMCR, culture, whistleblowing, risk management, and financial crime.
• Clear translation of regulatory expectations into practical board-level oversight, challenge, and discussion points.
• Use of recent enforcement actions and case studies and to bring emerging risks and regulatory expectations into sharper focus.
• Stronger foundation for informed board challenge and decision-making in a changing UK regulatory environment.
• Identification of specific areas that the directors wanted to validate the Bank’s compliance approach post-session.