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Founded in 1914, The Risk Management Association (RMA) is a not-for-profit, member-driven professional association whose sole purpose is to advance the use of sound risk principles in the financial services industry. RMA promotes an enterprise approach to risk management that focuses on credit risk, market risk, and operational risk.

Headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, RMA has approximately 3,000 institutional members that include banks of all sizes as well as nonbank financial institutions. They are represented in the association by 18,000 risk management professionals who are chapter members in financial centers throughout North America, Europe, and Asia/Pacific.

The Puget Sound Chapter, like all RMA chapters, is organized and run by volunteer members. We strongly encourage current or prospective members to become involved in shaping the future direction of the chapter by contacting any of the current officers or committee chairs. We would also be happy to discuss the many benefits that can be derived from membership in RMA.

Launched in 1923, the Puget Sound Chapter was named after Puget Sound, an arm of the Pacific Ocean on which the ports of Seattle and Tacoma are located. The commercial, industrial, and financial heart of the state of Washington is in the Puget Sound Basin.
 
Initially, chapter meetings focused primarily on credit department activities. By the 1950s, the focus had shifted to lending activities, with loan officers taking leading roles in the chapter's programs. Top lenders from member institutions selected meeting topics that addressed methods of handling specific kinds of credits.
 
Speakers from the financial services industry became increasingly active at the chapter's meetings, explaining conditions in their fields. Panels of local bankers explored and discussed lending practices. In the 1970s, as women started holding more and more top lending roles in member banks, they began to join the chapter and attend meetings.
 
Dinner meetings are held in downtown Seattle six times a year at the Washington Athletic Club on the first Tuesday of each month. A variety of pertinent and interesting topics are discussed at the meetings with expert speakers covering such subjects as economic conditions, financial stocks prospects, leading companies' plans, and many other topics of interest to financial professionals.
 
The chapter collects nominal local dues to provide funds for special educational programs, a newsletter called The Spread Sheet, and other chapter expenses.
 
Each year, the chapter offers several educational opportunities, taught by expert instructors. Subjects include lending to various types of industries, cash flow analysis, and other areas of current interest to local financial professionals. These programs are an excellent source of knowledge and training for lenders and credit-related professionals, as well as for enterprise-wide risk managers.

Home | Join RMA | News | Events | Young Professionals | Contacts | Chapter Administration