This paper presents evidence that the traditional banking business of accepting deposits and making loans has declined significantly in the US in recent years. There has been a switch from directly held assets to pension funds and mutual funds. However, banks have maintained their position...

President Anthony Santomero discusses three points: risk management as its own distinct discipline; the financial industry's work to improve risk-management techniques and regulators' increased commitment to risk-focused examinations; and the need to improve risk-management systems even further.

Major challenges for life insurance companies have been posed by an unprecedented wave of mergers and acquisitions in the insurance industry and the emergence of non-traditional competitors such as banks, mutual fund companies and investment advisory firms. This is the first book to analyze the...