Dirk Witteveen to chair Joint Forum

The Joint Forum’s parent organisations, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), and the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), today announced the appointment of Dirk Witteveen as chair of the Joint Forum for a two-year term beginning January 2006.

Mr Witteveen, who succeeds Ian Johnston of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission in this role, is an Executive Director of De Nederlandsche Bank and has been involved in the work of the Joint Forum for several years.

The Joint Forum’s parent organisations expressed their gratitude to Mr Johnston for his leadership during his time as Chairman and for his keen enthusiasm for the work of the Joint Forum over the years.

Mr Witteveen cited the Joint Forum as an excellent example of supervisory initiatives to address the industry’s concerns about cross-sectoral and cross-border cooperation. “I am honoured to have been appointed to this important position in the international regulatory arena and look forward to working closely with my colleagues from across the banking, insurance and securities sectors on areas of common interest.”

The Joint Forum was established in 1996 under the aegis of the BCBS, IOSCO, and the IAIS to deal with issues common to the banking, securities and insurance sectors, including the supervision of financial conglomerates.