Koror, Republic of Palau — The Financial Institutions Commission (FIC) successfully concluded a three-day Bank Examination Training held on Monday, June 29th and Wednesday–Thursday, July 1st–2nd, 2026 at the FIC Conference Room in Koror. The training participants included the Executive Commissioner Ms. Valorie Tikei Sbal, and FIC bank examiners Ms. Dilerong Ikesiil and Mr. Kedul Andreas. The program is the second module in the Commission’s examiner capacity-building series and advances the off-site monitoring foundation established in February 2026 into the full life cycle of a risk-focused on-site examination.
“An examination is only as good as the report that records it,” said training facilitator and former FIC senior bank examiner Ms. Lindsay Timarong. She added that “This training series gives the FIC examiners a repeatable method — plan based on documented risk, test with evidence, and write findings that the bank board can act on and that the Commission can enforce.”
Throughout the three-day sessions, participants reviewed how a risk-focused scope directs examination resources to where risk actually sits; how each CAMELS component is assessed and rated from documented evidence rather than impression; and how component conclusions are weighed into a composite rating that drives the intensity of the supervisory response. During the training, participants developed a pre-examination planning package — including a risk assessment and summary risk profile, a pre-examination information request letter, and an examination plan with budgeted hours; completed component-by-component CAMELS analyses supported by follow-up questions and working paper references; and practiced drafting Examination Conclusions. The training concluded with a capstone exercise in which each examiner presented and defended Report of Examination component analysis ratings.
The program was anchored throughout in the Financial Institutions Act of 2001, the FDIC Risk Management Manual of Examination Policies, the Uniform Financial Institutions Rating System (UFIRS), and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision’s Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision, reinforcing the alignment of the FIC’s examination practices with international supervisory standards.
The training forms part of the FIC’s broader commitment to strengthening supervisory effectiveness, promoting safety and soundness, and enhancing the Commission’s capacity to detect and respond to risks in a timely, transparent, and consistent manner.
The Financial Institutions Commission (FIC) is the prudential regulatory authority responsible for licensing, supervising, and examining financial institutions operating in the Republic of Palau.