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A world leader in the Credit industry is looking for a Senior Credit Risk Consultant.
With over 10 years experience working solely in the Data & Analytics sector our consultants are able to offer detailed insights into the industry.
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Data & Analytics is an industry that is constantly evolving and is always using the latest technology to innovate its services and capabilities. More recently, these advancements have moved in areas such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML). Machine Learning is a method of data analysis, under the branch of Artificial Intelligence, that allows systems to learn from data, identify patterns and ultimately make decisions with little to no human intervention. Used across a vast range of sectors, this arm of Data & Analytics has become widely popular, especially within highly-advanced industries such as Finance. Since the 2008 financial crash, at the top of the agenda for many Financial Institutions (FIs) was, and still is, the need to protect business, increase profitability and, possibly most importantly, address the abundant inadequacies of risk management. This includes risks posed by consumers such as liquidity, insolvency, model and sovereign, as well as any internal process and operational risk the FIs may also be facing through any failures or glitches. Machine Learning has played a crucial role in improving the quality and precision of FIs risk management abilities. In HPC Wire, it has been reported that the use of AI and ML within the financial sphere to mitigate risk, improve insights and develop new offerings may generate more than $250 billion for the banking industry. How does ML work? By using incredibly large data sets, drawn (with consent) from consumers, ML can learn, and predict, patterns in consumer behaviour. This can be done in one of two ways: through supervised learning tools, or unsupervised learning tools. Explained by Aziz and Dowling; “In supervised learning you have input data that you wish to test to determine an output. In unsupervised learning, you only have input data and wish to learn more about the structure of the data.” How do banks use ML to mitigate risk? In FIs, a mix of the two ML tools are used. Most commonly, we can expect to see learning systems such as data mining, neural networks and business rules management systems in play across a lot of banks. These models work in tandem to identify relationships between the data given from the FIs and their consumers – from their profiles to their spending habits, credit card applications to recorded phone calls – which then build ‘character profiles’ of each individual customer. The process can then begin, spotting signs of potential risk factors. This may include debt, fraud and/or money laundering. Here we break down two key examples. Fraud Thanks to ML, customers have become accustomed to incredibly quick and effective notification of fraudulent activity from their banks. This ability from FIs comes from large and historical datasets of credit card transactions and machines which have been algorithmically trained to understand and spot problematic activity. As stated by Bart van Liebergen; “The historical transaction datasets showcase a wide variety of pre-determined features of fraud, which distinguish normal card usage from fraudulent card usage, ranging from features from transactions, the card holder, or from transaction history.” For example, if your usual ‘character profile’ is known by ML tools to spend between £500 - £1000 per month on your credit card, and suddenly this limit is overtly exceeded, fraudulent activity tags will be alerted, and the freezing of your account can be done in real-time. Credit applications When borrowing from a bank or any other FI, consumers must undertake a credit risk assessment to ensure that they have a record of paying back debt on time, and therefore not adding greater cost, and risk, to the lender. Traditionally, FIs have approached credit risk with linear, logit and probit regressions but, serious flaws were found in these methods, with many applications being left incomplete. In this space, the evidence for the effectiveness of ML is overwhelming. Khandani et al. found that FIs using ML to analyse and review credit risk can lead to a 25 per cent cost saving for the FI involved. These ML models come in various shapes and sizes, with the most common being instantaneous apps or websites which allow users and their banks to have access to real-time scoring, data visualisation tools and business intelligence tools. The risk of risk management with ML Like with any AI or ML application or tool, there will always be cause for concern and real need to always remain vigilant. While ML has shown to be an invaluable tool across lower risk areas, the complexity of more statistical areas of banking, such as loans, has proven to be an Achilles heel for the technology. This usually stems from bias, a perpetual problem for AI and ML across all industries. Technology Review notes that “There are two main ways that bias shows up in training data: either the data you collect is unrepresentative of reality, or it reflects existing prejudices.” Data, analytics, AI and ML are notoriously non-diverse working sectors. The person behind the screen creating learning algorithms tends to be white and male, and very unrepresentative of the whole society that the machine learning tool will serve. Over the years, we have heard numerous accounts of unfair and unjust machines, which have learned from a very narrow and unrepresentative dataset, which stems from the lack of diversity amongst the employees within the Data & Analytics industry. For example, Microsoft’s racist bot and Amazon’s sexist recruitment tool, both clear examples that ML and AI are not ready to be used on their own, and humans still need to play an integral part in decision making. Banks and FIs must be aware of the, potentially lethal, consequences that bias in ML may present. Lenders must be careful to ensure they are working within the guidelines of fair lending laws and that no one group of people are being penalised for no reason other than issues within the technology and its algorithms. It is vital that the humans behind the technology don’t rely on ML to provide them with an answer 100 per cent of the time but, instead, use it to aid them in their decision making when it comes to risk mitigation. If you’re looking for a role in Data & Analytics or are interested in finance or Risk Analytics, we may have a role for you. Take a look at our latest opportunities or get in touch with one of our expert consultants to learn more.
by Conor Larkin
18. March 2021
What if you could manage risk and build a winning team the way Billy Bean does in Moneyball? If you’ve never seen the movie, it’s essentially this. You don’t need the best to win, the players who will cost you the most money or who are the most popular. You need players whose sole skill is to get on base. When it comes to the world of finance, how might you manage risk and find ways to get on base so to speak? You may want to consider a Trade Analyst. Conversely, if you’re a data professional who’s got a nose for numbers, predictions, and the aptitude to get on base yourself, you may want to consider this as your next role. Not unlike so many Data Analyst jobs, you’re using Data to determine risk as well as deep dive into SWOT (strengths, weakness, obstacles, and threats) for your business. You’ll be managing statistics and pinpointing the best times of the day for optimal trading. A Key Player in the World of Trade Much like a stockbroker begins when the markets open, so too, does a Trade Analyst. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to run point between the stockholders and those for whom they’re buying and selling. Looking for puzzle solvers with an eye for detail and investigation, this role offers work with people from around the world. And as we continue, or as this year comes to a close, begin to cement our remote working opportunities, the world opens a host of opportunities for this role and many like it. What You Need to Know Buzz words abound in the data space and the classification for Trade Analyst can also be Financial Services Agent. Perhaps FSA is better as it gives a much more concise idea of what the job entails. However, Trader Analyst likens to a version of a Stock Broker who can drill down to the sharpest point what works, what will sell, what won’t, and how to fix what won’t work to what will. While education is important for this role, the soft skills so in demand will be required here, too. Can you be the calm in the chaos? Does making the sale motivate you? Can you think on your feet? If you answered yes to any of these questions, here are a few education and skills components you’ll need to know. Degree in international business is a good place to start as is a degree in finance, economics, or logisticsAdd in a second language for good measureStrong research skills.Understanding financial trends within and across geographic regionsUnderstanding supply and demandHighly communicative with staff, executives, stakeholders, and the public. Not unlike a language professional who roles easily from a foreign language to English and back again, a Trade Analyst must be able to translate numbers and predictions into the language of persuasive bargaining. Market analysis conducted through such platforms as polls and surveys. This role offers job security for the professional who comes alive in a fast-paced environment within the world of business. Your wallet and bank account may thank you, too. Going to the Show In baseball, going to the show implies you’re in the major leagues. That you’ll perform on the field of a major league team. You’re officially ‘on stage’. And so, it is with your role, even entry-level, of a Trade Analyst. From the moment you’re in the office and the phone rings to the final closing bell of the exchange, you’re on the field, and playing with the heavy hitters. You’ll identify risk, engage with customers, pay attention to the score, er deliverables and expectations, all the while staying in compliance with regulations. If you’re looking for a role in Data & Analytics or are interested in finance or international trade analysis, we may have a role for you. Take a look at our latest opportunities or get in touch with one of our expert consultants to learn more.
by Sam Maughan
19. November 2020
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