Internal Audit Services for Financial Institutions

According to legal requirements from the Bank of Lithuania (LB), it is obligatory for financial institutions, including electronic money institutions and payment institutions, to have an Internal Audit in place.

As companies continue to navigate rapidly changing business models, regulatory requirements, technology disruption, and more, the necessity for the Internal Audit (IA) to add value for the business is ever-increasing.

Importance of internal audit

In fact, the IA can play an important role in helping organizations to identify process improvement opportunities while also making progress on strategic and business growth priorities. Why do you need the IA?

First, it helps you to understand whether the processes work the way they were designed. In other words, do the actions match documentation or vice versa. It gives you assurance.

Second, it is an opportunity for you to evaluate whether you have enough staff. Convincing management and (or) supervisory board that you need additional team members sometimes might be hard, but the results of the internal audit can be your undeniable argument.

Third, independent auditors are interested in showing things as they are rather than making something look better than it is. Such an approach helps to identify gaps and make improvements before a regulator pays a visit. The internal auditor’s main purpose is to show business where operations could be improved and, if needed, consulting can be provided.

The internal auditor shall draw up an annual internal audit plan based on the results of the risk assessment of the company’s activities.

Why ECOVIS International is the best choice for internal audit services

ECOVIS is an international audit and legal service firm present in more than 90 countries worldwide. We unite a strong team of experienced professionals and we always dive deep into actual clients’ processes and controls in place to assess their compliance with regulatory requirements and effectiveness.

Our team can provide a full outsourced Internal audit function and audit with all relevant topics for financial institutions:

• AML/CFT Compliance Program
• Safeguarding of Customers‘ Funds
• Capital Adequacy
• Outsourcing Arrangements
• Activities of EMI’s agents
• Information and Communication Technology and Security Risk Management
• Governance, Internal Control, and Risk Management System
• Data Protection and Privacy
• Business Plan Continuity evaluation
• Compliance Function such as compliance with: –  the scope of the license (e. g. in case of new product launch); –  the requirements for management (e. g. process of the appointment of management bodies members); –  the reporting requirements (i. e. process of the submission of relevant reports to the Bank of Lithuania).
• Management of Relationship with Customers (e. g. general terms and conditions, special terms and conditions, complaints handling procedure)

Our Internal Audit team consists of experts in the following fields:

• IT & Cyber Security
• Compliance
• Finance
• Legal
• Risk Management
• Anti-Money Laundering
• GDPR

Our presentation on internal audit services (click the below picture)