Tackling hurdles to humanitarian action: the case of bank de-risking

This session will discuss bank de-risking in the wider context of sanctions regime. De-risking is one of the unintended negative consequences of sanctions on the effective delivery of humanitarian aid. It occurs when financial institutions terminate or restrict business relationships with clients or categories of clients when they consider the risk too high in view of the international sanctions to which they may be exposed.

This solution-oriented discussion will promote a multi-disciplinary approach, bringing together participants from the humanitarian sector, the banking sector, representatives from Member States, international bodies, regulators and donors. The relevant stakeholders may present best practice identified by them and critically assess how it has been beneficial, and whether there are any further steps to be undertaken to develop the best practice. Panellists will be encouraged to interact and provide comments to the practices presented. This shall be followed by a round of discussions on what concrete actions can be taken by each sector (humanitarian, banking, donor, regulator) and the cross-sectorial action to follow. This shall be complemented by inviting the participants in the session to participate to the open discussion on the potential way forward.