Mumbai, May 7 (IANS) India’s economy is growing well and the banking sector remains stable despite global and domestic challenges, M. Nagaraju, Secretary of the Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance, said on Thursday.

Speaking at the Indian Banks’ Association’s (IBA) inaugural Summit on Risk Management held here, Nagaraju said risk management in banks must be treated as a strategic responsibility and embedded across all functions of the banking system.

“Despite various challenges, the economy is growing well and the banking sector is stable and performing well. Risk management, which is an important function of banks, should be a strategic responsibility and should be embedded in all functions of banks,” according to him.

Additionally, the session was also addressed by Challa Sreenivasulu Setty, Chairman of the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) and State Bank of India and Gopal Murli Bhagat, Deputy Chief Executive of the IBA.

Setty noted that banking is fundamentally about managing intermediation risks, adding that while emerging risks are growing in complexity, banks must not lose sight of core operational risks.

Bhagat described the risk summit as more than an annual gathering, calling it a shared platform for insight and innovation to reimagine risk management across the banking and financial sector.

Moreover, the summit brought together over 200 participants, including senior officials from public sector, private, foreign and cooperative banks, as well as All India Financial Institutions (AIFIs) and industry experts.

In addition, Nagaraju has released a commemorative essay book featuring the top 30 entries from over 650 submissions received nationwide from banking professionals and unveiled a survey report on risk management practices.

He commended banking professionals for their contributions, saying their collective expertise would be pivotal in addressing future challenges in the financial sector.

–IANS

ag/