With a Change in the Credit Cycle, a Rise in Special Assets Is Likely: Is Your Institution Prepared?

In early 2016, the then-Comptroller of the Currency, Thomas Curry, issued a strongly worded report. ‘‘In the area of credit risk, the warning lights are flashing yellow,’’ he wrote in the OCC’s Semi-Annual Risk Perspective. ‘‘We can’t wait until the warning lights turn red.’’ Curry urged bankers to remember that ‘‘the worst loans are made in the best of times, and the growing credit risk in their banks should be managed very closely.’’

That was 2016. In 2019, the lights have not stopped flashing. This article outlines risk identification, monitoring, measuring and control measures that could help financial institutions increase their resilience and weather the next financial storm.