Welcome to the June edition of the Bearning newsletter!

Summer is officially here—and with it, we bring you the latest developments from the world of banking and financial education. While markets remain attentive to central bank signals and shifting yield curves, banks continue to refine their risk strategies and digital transformation efforts. In this issue, we focus on how current financial themes translate into banking practice, share highlights from our recent courses, and—as always—test your knowledge with our monthly quiz.

We also bring a few practical updates: the summer season is ideal for self-paced learning, and our discounted e-learning bundles remain available for those looking to deepen their skills in ALM, treasury, and risk management.

Let’s explore what June has brought to the world of banking and bank learning.

1. Insights for Banking Professionals

How Strong Is Your Bank ALM?

Our recent poll on LinkedIn addressed a simple but essential question: How advanced is your ALM technology setup? The responses also shed light on a related and important issue: What is the primary purpose of a bank's ALCO (Asset and Liability Committee)?

ALM Must Drive Decisions – Not Just Monitor Risks

The poll results suggest that in many banks, ALM departments and ALCOs remain too passive, often functioning more as review bodies than as decision-making organs. We encourage institutions to challenge this status quo and evolve their ALM function into a true decision forum, supported by robust analytics and aligned incentives. This shift is achievable through better tools and deeper expertise. 🔗 See the post and poll results

An interesting insight we highlighted in our blog is the evolving role of ALM teams. ALM is not just about reporting gaps and ratios. When done well, it influences how banks price products, define strategy, and allocate capital. In high-performing banks, ALM insights are integrated into business decisions at every level. We explored what it takes for ALM to move from a kind of middle-office reporting to a proactive management tool at the heart of balance sheet steering. 🔗 Read more in our post here

What Keeps Treasurers Up at Night?

Bank treasurers today operate in a complex landscape shaped by interest rate volatility, liquidity stress, and evolving regulation. In our recent posts, we explored the most pressing challenges facing ALCOs and bank ALM/treasury departments, particularly how asset-liability management remains a cornerstone of bank stability.

Ethan Heisler's blog shared key takeaways from industry commentary on why bank treasurers worry a lot. Whether it’s about deposit flight, changing duration profiles, or the impact of regulatory demands, the responsibilities of treasury units continue to expand. Yet, the core question remains: Are ALCOs managing the bank’s risks, or merely reviewing them? 🔗 Read our full post and the blog here

From Local Realities to Global Standards

Banking supervision and regulatory frameworks vary widely across jurisdictions, but the underlying risks are increasingly interconnected. In another post, we reflected on an insightful article by BIS discussing how local banking practices must adapt to global regulatory expectations. In a world where liquidity moves fast and crises can cross borders within hours, relying solely on national approaches may not be enough. Supervisors and banks alike need to develop a deeper understanding of systemic vulnerabilities and the global policy backdrop. 🔗 Explore here our post and the article

2. Bearning Courses and E-learning Updates

🌞 Summer Discount on Bearning E-learning Bundles

Summer is a perfect time to invest in your professional development, and with Bearning's e-learning bundles, you can do just that at your own pace.

Our premium e-learning bundles are designed specifically for bank financial managers, controllers, ALM specialists, and treasury professionals. These comprehensive online courses cover the core disciplines of modern bank management:

• Asset and Liability Management (ALM)
• Financial Controlling and Planning
• Treasury and Financial Markets
• Risk Management
• Bank Regulation and Compliance

Each course is structured with a mix of professional texts, interactive examples, and knowledge tests. The tests include a large number of well-explained questions, making them a valuable tool for interactive learning and practical understanding. Upon completing a course, you earn a certificate, which is ideal for documenting your expertise in a specific area.

For those looking for broader content, the extended bundle includes additional topics (such as fintech and blockchain, corporate treasury or private banking & investing), more quizzes, and concludes with an overall certificate that confirms your knowledge across all major areas.

• ✔ All content is available online, with lifetime access, no subscription needed
• ✔ Over 1000 quiz questions, each with explanation
• ✔ Developed by experienced bankers, based on real-world practice

🎁 Special Offer – 40% Off Use the coupon code summer40 at checkout to get 40% off any e-learning bundle. The price will be updated immediately. You can also gift access to a colleague or team member.

👉 Explore and enroll in the course bundles here

📅 Free Webinar – Bank FTP & Quantitative Planning

We invite you to join our next free live webinar, focused on a key topic in bank financial management: Funds Transfer Pricing (FTP) and Quantitative Planning. This session provides a practical look into:

• How FTP supports profitability measurement
• Using FTP for strategic and financial planning
• Key metrics in planning across business lines
• Practical Case Study in QuantPlan: FTP, profitability, and scenarios in action

• 🗓 Date: July 10, 2025
• ⏰ Time: 14:00 – 15:00 CET
• 💻 Format: Online via MS Teams (registration here)
• 💬 Language: English

This session is particularly suitable for those in bank controlling, finance, strategy, Treasury and ALM functions.

👉 Register for free here

3. Kurzy v slovenskom jazyku

Moderné témy v našich júnových kurzoch: AI a regulácia kryptoaktív

V júni sme sa v rámci slovenských kurzov Bearning zamerali na aktuálne a rýchlo sa vyvíjajúce oblasti, ktoré budú v najbližších rokoch formovať finančný sektor.

Jednou z hlavných tém bolo využitie umelej inteligencie vo finančníctve a bankovníctve. Na inhouse školení sme diskutovali o potenciáli AI v oblasti analýzy údajov, automatizácie rozhodovania, ale aj o výzvach, ktoré táto technológia prináša z pohľadu regulátorov a finančného dohľadu. 🔗 Pozrite si viac v našom poste tu

Druhou hlavnou oblasťou bola nová európska regulácia kryptoaktív MiCA (Markets in Crypto Assets). V dvoch samostatných workshopoch sme sa venovali obsahu regulácie, jej dopadom na finančné inštitúcie, aj praktickým aspektom aplikácie v oblasti produktov a compliance. Prečítajte si o nich v našich LinkedIn postoch tu: 🔗 Bearning kurz MiCA a kryptomeny a 🔗 Inhouse workshop o kryptoaktívach a MiCA

Na tému umelej inteligencie a dohľadu vo finančnom sektore sme pripravili aj samostatný príspevok - prečítajte si zaujímavý report 📄 od BIS – Financial Stability Institute o využívaní AI v inštitúciách finančného dohľadu: 🔗 Článok o AI a finančnom dohľade

Pozvánka na jesenné Bearning kurzy: prihláste sa už teraz!

Už teraz máme naplánované viaceré odborné kurzy na jeseň 2025 a tešíme sa na ich realizáciu. Na väčšinu z nich sú už prihlásení prví účastníci, odporúčame preto naplánovať si účasť na kurze a čo najskôr sa registrovať na našom slovenskom webe bearning.sk:

• 📅 25. 9. 2025 Treasury Workshop
• 📅 02. 10. 2025 Kapitálový trh a spracovanie cenných papierov
• 📅 06. 10. 2025 Umelá inteligencia (AI) v bankovníctve
• 📅 21. 10. 2025 KYC a AML v banke
• 📅 22. 10. 2025 Digitálne peniaze
• 📅 23. 10. 2025 Kapitálový trh (pokročilá téma)
• 📅 26. 11. 2025 Krypto-trhy a MiCA regulácia

Počas leta doplníme ešte niektoré ďalšie kurzy, aby sme pokryli ďalšie dôležité témy bankového vzdelávania. Sledujte náš web a Bearning LinkedIn pre najnovšie informácie.

4. Banking Industry Quiz

Test Your Knowledge with Bearning's Monthly Quiz ✅❌❔

As we covered cryptoassets and MiCA regulation in several June workshops, this month’s quiz focuses on how MiCA defines and classifies different types of crypto-assets.

❓ Which of the following is NOT considered a crypto-asset under the EU MiCA regulation? (Select one incorrect option – the others are classified under MiCA.)

• A) Asset-referenced token (ART)
• B) E-money token (EMT)
• C) Utility token
• D) Bitcoin ETF traded on a regulated stock exchange

🧠 Answer and explanation will appear in next month's issue.

5. Quiz Solution Corner ✅

Review and Learn from Last Month's Quiz

❓ What is an Interest Rate Swap (IRS) NOT suitable for?

• A) Hedging an interest rate risk (IRR) position
• B) Opening an interest rate risk (IRR) position
• C) Exchanging bonds for cash
• D) Closing an interest rate risk (IRR) position

✅ Correct answer: C) Exchanging bonds for cash

Explanation: Interest Rate Swaps (IRS) are derivative instruments that allow two parties to exchange interest rate payments — typically, a fixed rate for a floating rate, or vice versa — without exchanging the underlying principal. This makes them very flexible tools for managing interest rate risk. However, they are not applicable for solving liquidity issues.

• A) Hedging IRR position – IRS are widely used to hedge interest rate risk. For example, a bank with fixed-rate assets can use a swap to receive floating and pay fixed, offsetting risk.
• B) Opening IRR position – Traders or treasurers may use IRS to create a new interest rate exposure when they want to take a view on future rate movements.
• D) Closing IRR position – IRS can also be used to reduce or eliminate existing interest rate risk by entering into an offsetting swap.
• C) Exchanging bonds for cash – This is not the function of an IRS. Swaps do not involve the transfer of cash for bonds or securities. Such a transaction would typically involve repos, not an IRS contract.

📚 Want to practice more? Visit our Bearning e-learning platform for 1000+ quiz questions and full course bundles on treasury, ALM, and derivatives. Use now bundles with 40% summer discount!

Stay Connected with Bearning

We hope this month’s insights, updates, and quiz have helped you stay informed and inspired in your professional banking journey. At Bearning, we continue to support bankers and financial professionals through practical education, in-house trainings, and consulting -because Bearning is Bank Learning!

• 📚 Explore more at: www.bearning.com
• 🎓 E-learning & webinars: study.bearning.com
• 🔗 Follow us on LinkedIn: Bearning LinkedIn
• 📧 Contact us: office@bearning.com

Let us know if you’d like to organize a workshop, explore e-learning for your team, or book a consultation.

Enjoy the summer and keep learning!

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