The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) Abu Dhabi Chapter recently held a professional development event in Abu Dhabi at the Burjeel Hospital Auditorium, which was attended by a 130 plus strong audience.

The Seminar was on the twin topics of 'Global Economic Scenario' and 'Operating and Regulatory Challenges and their implications for the UAE Banking System'. The chairman of the Abu Dhabi Chapter, CA Ramesh Krishnan inaugurated the seminar by introducing the topic and informing about the other activities of the Chapter. CA Ramesh Krishnan also provided details of the upcoming annual international seminar to be held in Abu Dhabi on the November 8-9.

Simon Williams, chief economist, Middle East from HSBC provided an overview of the overall global economic scenario. The positive aspect was that HSBC expects the eurozone to muddle through the financial crisis. However, EU is looking at another 5-7 years of austerity measures at a minimum. As far as the US is concerned, although activity has picked up since the crisis, the fundamental situation has not improved, contrary to public perception. Closer to home, signs of Dubai picking up are visible and although Abu Dhabi might not see significant changes in the near future, it is a secure economy in the long run due to stable and growing oil revenues. He ended on a note that the growth in the world economy will now be governed by emerging markets rather than the western world and the world is in the process of this shift.

Abhijit Choudhury, chief risk officer for NBAD provided an overview of operating and regulatory challenges and their implications on the UAE Banking system. He defined the characteristics and the practical application of risk analysis, with special emphasis on measures to improve risk awareness amongst all levels of management. He mentioned that every employee is a risk manager in his own capacity. He went on to show robust capital adequacy ratios amongst banks in the UAE which exceeded 20 per cent for the past three years due to which there is no immediate concerns on Basel III capital adequacy standards. He mentioned that real estate remains vulnerable due to large supply overhang, upcoming project completions and falling real estate prices.

The ICAI is the second largest professional accounting body in the world in terms of membership, second only to American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The Abu Dhabi Chapter of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India is now 28 years old and comprises of 500 members and is one of the most active chapters among 21 overseas chapters of the Institute.