The role of compliance officers came into sharper focus since 1995 when the General Manager in charge of Audit and Inspection was made responsible for the compliance functions, with a requirement for periodic reporting or certification on compliance functions directly to the CMD.
However, it was gradually recognized that the circumference of compliance functions in banks needed to be not only enlarged, but also clearly defined, especially in a scenario where successive Annual Financial Inspection Reports prepared by the banking supervisor highlighted a host of compliance deficiencies.