Aktis Platform Boosts Banks’ Corporate Governance Transparency

Data intelligence firm Aktis is rolling out a cloud-based platform for banks to benchmark and analyze their market positions compared to industry peers.

The company said in a press release on Monday (Oct. 22) that it is launching Governance.Direct, a platform that aggregates more than 800 governance data points from top global banks, including board size and composition, director expertise, gender diversity and committee structure. Aktis said it aims to make governance transparent for the banking industry.

The information is gathered across a range of sources, including public disclosures, in which information is often “buried in thousands of pages,” the company said. Bank clients can access detailed analysis reports of governance information based on that customer’s needs.

“The launch of this unique platform is particularly pertinent, given the 10-year anniversary of the global financial crisis,” said Aktis CEO Ben Grosman in a statement. “The mechanisms, processes and relations by which banks are governed have rightly been the focus of unprecedented public scrutiny and attention since then. Our data shows how far the industry has progressed, but also reveals that a number of problems still linger and are re-emerging.”

In addition to analysis reports, existing bank clients of Aktis, which include Société Générale and Credit Suisse, also have access to regular governance intelligence updates, the company said. Grosman added this analysis is important to mitigate systemic risk across the world’s banking industry and bolster the “integrity and robustness of the sector.”

“Our platform provides banks with quality comparative data and benchmarking tools for detailed analysis of their peers and competitors, as well as the corporate governance landscape more broadly,” he added.

A recent warning from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) urged corporate governance executives across industries to prioritize cybersecurity and disclosure of information to investors.

“Cybersecurity is the most important corporate governance issue we face,” said SEC Commissioner Robert Jackson, Jr. at the Society for Corporate Governance meeting earlier this year. “There is no greater threat to businesses than cyberattacks.”