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Behaviour and culture

As a conduct-of-business supervisor, the AFM supervises conduct and culture at financial enterprises. The culture within an organisation has a large influence on the behaviour of employees. Awareness of conduct and culture helps to identify potential risks to customers’ interests at an early stage and address the root cause of incidents.

The frameworks for desirable conduct and culture at institutions are laid down in various laws and regulations. This legislation and regulation forms the basis for the AFM’s supervision. This takes the form of our ongoing reviews, as well as the specific thematic reviews we perform on issues that affect conduct and culture. The aim of these reviews is to understand how for instance the structure and decision-making process at an organisation and the behaviour of senior managers influence the development of products and services. For this we use specific expertise in relation to organisational conduct, organisational structure and intervention skills.

Our reviews have two main purposes. First, we want to help the sector develop with reference to the themes that affect conduct and culture, and we engage in dialogue with parties on this issue. Second, the findings of our reviews can help us to identify and understand the causes of any risks or incidents that may arise. We can then intervene in an appropriate manner to encourage the development of products and services that serve the interests of customers.

For more information, contact us at gedragcultuur@afm.nl