But artificial intelligence and automatic learning can also be applied to tasks such as automatic information reconciliation, fraud detection, risk mitigation and regulatory compliance. The final innovation I should like to mention in this brief review is cloud computing. In an environment in which data are configured as a strategic asset, this technique enables new 4/6  solutions to be offered with greater speed, cost efficiencies to be attained and business process adaptation to become more nimble. That said, this must all be done while maintaining an appropriate level of security, especially as far as critical areas are concerned. A little historical perspective suffices to see the improvements that new technologies can bring to users. Credit and debit cards, ATMs and on-line banking are obvious examples of past innovations that have changed our day-to-day for the better. The success of these changes, however, has been closely bound up with the appropriate treatment of risks and the vulnerabilities that inevitably accompany these processes. The move to a more digital economy is accompanied by greater cyber threats, and new measures safeguarding processes, assets and customer data must be developed. Along with paying particular attention to the management of these threats, it will also be essential to respond to the challenges stemming from the concentration of operational risk among a small number of critical service-providers, or those arising from customer protection. Financial services-providers must also meet the challenge of understanding in their full dimension the functioning and results of increasingly automated and autonomous algorithms and procedures.
Thomas C Baxter: Compliance – some thoughts about reaching the next level Remarks by Mr Thomas C Baxter, Executive Vice President and General Counsel of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, at the Fordham Journal of Corporate Counsel & Financial Law Symposium, Fordham Law School, New York City, 9 February 2015. *  *  *  These remarks are personal and do not necessarily represent the views of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, or any component of the Federal Reserve System. Introduction Let me begin by thanking Professor Sean Griffith, the director of the Corporate Law Center, and Robert Lyons, editor of the Fordham Journal of Corporate & Financial Law, for inviting me to participate in this symposium about corporate compliance and corporate governance. Let me also thank Fordham Law School for hosting the symposium. I would also like to recognize a colleague who is with us today. He is Martin Grant, who is the New York Fed’s chief ethics and compliance officer. I have had the privilege of working with Martin for the last 25 years, and much of what I have learned about compliance I have learned from him. In the space sometimes labeled compliance, we have come a very long way in a relatively short time. In about 20 years, compliance has transformed from a nice idea to an important component of most major corporations. This is especially true in the highly regulated industries, including the industry where I have made my career, financial services.