Circular concerning the internal control system and the internal audit function

NBB_2015_21 – 13 July 2015 Circular – Page 1/25 boulevard de Berlaimont 14 – BE-1000 Brussels tel. +32 2 221 38 12 – fax + 32 2 221 31 04 Company number: 0203.201.340 RPM (Trade Register) Brussels www.nbb.be Circular Brussels, 13 July 2015 Reference: NBB_2015_21 Contact person:
Kurt Van Raemdonck
Phone +32 2 221 53 39 – fax +32 2 221 31 04 kurt.vanraemdonck@nbb.be Circular concerning the internal control system and the internal audit function Scope Credit institutions, branches established in Belgium of credit institutions governed by the law of non-Member States of the European Economic Area (EEA), stockbroking firms, branches established in Belgium of stockbroking firms governed by the law of non-Member States of the EEA, payment institutions, electronic money institutions, branches established in Belgium of electronic money institutions governed by the law of non-Member States of the EEA, settlement institutions and assimilated institutions, settlement institutions and assimilated institutions established in Belgium which are branches of foreign institutions, insurance and reinsurance companies, branches established in Belgium of insurance and reinsurance companies governed by the law of non-Member States of the EEA, within the framework of consolidated supervision, group supervision or supplementary conglomerate supervision: financial holding companies and mixed financial holding companies, and finally, within the framework of group supervision: insurance holding companies. A separate letter will be sent to the branches established in Belgium of credit institutions, stockbroking firms, electronic money institutions, insurance and reinsurance companies governed by the law of other Member States of the EEA, to inform them of this circular and to request that they safeguard the application of the provisions protecting the general good by means of an adequate internal control system and audit function. Summary/Objective:
The supervisory laws and the Regulation of the Bank of 19 May 2015 on the internal control system and the internal audit function (hereinafter the 'Regulation of 19 May 2015') 1 provide that the institutions under supervision should have an adequate internal control system and an adequate and independent internal audit function. In this circular, the Bank provides further information on the manner in which the principles set out in the Regulation of 19 May 2015 will be applied when assessing the proper functioning and organization of the internal control system and the internal audit function within the supervised institutions. Structure:
1 Approved by the Royal Decree of 5 July 2015, published in the Belgian Official Gazette of 10 July 2015.