Eurobanking

EUROPEAN WORKING GROUP on OPERATIONAL RESEARCH in BANKING

Eurobanking provides an annual forum at which professionals in European banks with an interest in strategic, quantitative and analytic approaches to bank management meet and discuss their work. 

The 2008 conference was held in Maribor, Slovenia, - May 18-21 2008. Click here for details

The 2009 conference will be held in Duesseldorf/ Mettmann, Germany - May 17-20 2009. Click here for preliminary announcement

About Eurobanking

Eurobanking was set up in 1975 in Brussels as The European Working Group on Operational Research in Banking at the EURO 1 Conference sponsored by the International Federation of Operational Research Societies. Since renamed Eurobanking, the Group has arranged 32 meetings at which some 900 papers have been presented and discussed.  Eurobanking has now provided a forum for 30 years at which professionals in European banks with an interest in quantitative and analytic approaches to bank management have met and discussed their work.

Purpose of Eurobanking

The purpose of the Eurobanking is to provide an opportunity for members to exchange and discuss ideas about the techniques, experience, philosophy and application of operational research and quantitative techniques to bank management. It is also a forum for promoting wider understanding of these approaches amongst management, and meetings also include some sessions devoted to broader strategic issues facing European banks at which distinguished external speakers are invited to present their views.

Activities of Eurobanking

Eurobanking now holds an annual meeting which is limited in size to a maximum of about 80 participants, to ensure active participation and involvement of those attending. Some 30 or so papers are presented over excellent track record of discussing new approaches to bank management which have subsequently become adopted as mainstream practices amongst leading banks. Good examples include:

 
  • credit scoring
  • asset and liability management
  • customer, process and product costing
  • activity based cost management
  • branch planning and location
  • mergers and acquisitions
  • pricing of options, and other products
  • strategic importance of IT
  • data mining and decision support tools
  • analytical marketing tools
  • manpower planning
  • risk management
  • capital adequacy
  • strategic management

 

Organising Eurobanking

Eurobanking organises itself on a voluntary basis through a network of National Coordinators, one for each country. A different country hosts the meeting each year, and the National Coordinator of the host country normally acts as Chairman. There is no formal central resource, though one of the members is acting as Secretary General to the Group for a number of continuity. National Coordinators meet with the Chairman and Secretary General twice a year as the Executive Committee. The role of the National Coordinators is to be contact points, coordinators of views and representatives of their country.

Summing up, Eurobanking is the first virtual organisation effectively and efficiently working in Europe.

Benefits of Eurobanking

Over the years participants have strongly welcomed the opportunities of keeping up to date on the latest thinking and ideas through the formal papers. However of particular benefit has been the amount of time, about 30% allocated to the discussion of papers. In addition there is time for informal discussion, and members find that they join a large network of informal contacts which also is extremely valuable. Members find their horizons are expanded, and they gain an improved ability to set banking issues in a wider European perspective which is becoming increasingly important. Many former participants now hold senior positions in their banks, and have expressed how much they have valued Eurobanking.

Contacting Eurobanking

Secretary General:  Andree-Lise Remy-Allain, Mobi-phone: +33632630240, Tel.: +331433237572, andree-lise.remy@credit-agricole-sa.fr
Click here for Your National Eurobanking Co-ordinator