A three-day seminar on Fraud Prevention and Fraud Risk Management attracted more than 100 risk professionals on its opening day yesterday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Bahrain.

The event is organised by BIBF and the US-based Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) and is supported by the Central Bank of Bahrain and Tamkeen.

Based on ACFE's survey in 2012, it was reported that a typical organisation loses five per cent of its revenues to fraud each year which roughly translates to a global fraud loss of more than $3.5 trillion.

More than one fifth of the cases caused loses at least $1 million per organisation, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication, citing a top banking official.

"Given the above, it is important to identify and detect fraud, evaluate, monitor and mitigate fraud risk across organisations," remarked BIBF director Solveig Nicklos.

"It is with this objective, BIBF and ACFE will shed light on the risk of fraud on important economic institutions such as banks, insurance firms, the corporate and ministerial organisations, employers, employees and stakeholders of the growing economic structures in the region," stated Nicklos.

"The recent events on fraudulent activities which have been prominent in media have shown that fraud is one of the most significant systemic risks faced by financial and other institutions globally," she said.

"It is timely that BIBF Banking Centre is arranging this regional conference bringing together a group of global experts and showcasing BIBF's continuous service to the financial sector of the kingdom and the region at large," added Nicklos.

Facilitated by Gerald Zack, the president of Zack, PC Gaithersburg, Maryland, the seminar aims to bring together a diverse group of professionals, who will discuss the issues surrounding their businesses and appropriate response to the threat of fraudulent practices that cause monetary and reputational loss to their bottom lines.

"Fraud is a growing threat that has been headlining within this region and our attempt at this seminar will be to educate ourselves in managing this growing risk," said Zack.

"Education and awareness are the two important tools to detect and deal with fraud and improve an organisation's capacity to develop and implement a strategy to prevent fraud and mitigate fraud risk," he added.-TradeArabia News Service