Etica e rischio etico in banca: alcune riflessioni

The banking sector is highly exposed to ethical risk, as the Great Financial Crisis and the numerous financial scandals have highlighted. The topic is difficult to analyse because the definition of what is moral and what is not depends on the religion, the national culture, the historical period of time and the ethical theory of reference: kantianism is different from utilitarianism and from ethics of virtues. The moral principles that guide the human behaviour in the domain of business may be different from those prevailing in the family relationships or in the social context. Consequently, there is not wide consensus about the definition of ethical risk. Luckily, to a great extent it overlaps with other risks of the banks. The analysis, measurement and management of these other risks could be sufficient to reduce ethical risk.