Whole Industry Simulation Exercise 2019

WISE 2019

WISE 2019 was successfully held 18th October 2019, following similar events held in 2015 and 2017. This exercise series enhances Hong Kong’s position as a world-class financial services centre by helping to strengthen the resilience of the industry. The event was led by the industry, overseen by the Hong Kong Financial Services Business Continuity Management Forum, who commissioned Control Risks to design and deliver the exercise. 

42 financial institutions participated, with each Crisis Management Team responding to a systemic threat to the Hong Kong markets. Scenario development was supported by the Hong Kong Police, Regulators (HKMA and SFC), and Hong Kong Exchange (HKEX). 

Watch the summary video here.

The final report can be downloaded here.

THE EXERCISE 

A web based portal, designed by Ruder Finn Asia was used to deliver the exercise materials to the various participants. Crisis Management Teams, consisting of senior management from each financial organisation, could view video news clips, social media, and news headlines.

The WISE2019 welcome video: part 1 and part 2 by Will Brown.

A key feature for 2019 was the ability for each participant to respond to the news and social media by uploading press statements and their own social media communications. This created a highly interactive environment designed to allow

organisations to practice their public facing response to a crisis.

 COMMAND CENTRE 

Delivery of the exercise materials, monitoring of the exercise progression and overall command and control was centrally coordinated through the WISE 2019 Command Centre. Overseen by HKFSBCM and Control Risks, with technical support from Ruder Finn and staffed by over 50 volunteers from across the industry, the Command Centre ensured that all exercise materials were delivered, and the pace increased or decreased to reflect feedback from participants.

Additional support from the Financial Times provided realistic media pressure. A number of observers attended the Command Centre from the Regulators (SFC and HKMA),  Dubai Regulator, Hong Kong Exchange (HKEX), and Hong Kong Police.

Above: WISE 2017 Command Centre Volunteers and Observers.

Right: WISE 2017 Command Centre Oversight Team, (L-R)

William Brown (Control Risks), Leigh Farina (HKFSBCM),

Willem Hoekstra (HKFSBCM), Julian Heath (Control Risks).

BRIEFING SESSIONS

Prior to the delivery of the exercise, two 'Participant Briefing' sessions were held. These provided financial institutions with relevant industry briefings as well as information relating to the organisation and planning of the exercise. The briefings covered up to date information on cyber threats and provided good practice advice in relation to Crisis Management.

In addition, two initial information briefing sessions on the WISE initiative, hosted by HKMA and SFC were held in March 2017.

Finally, two briefing sessions for the facilitator in each Crisis Management Team were held. The last session was 9 October 2017.

If you are unfamiliar with crisis simulation exercises, please refer to the WISE and WISE2015 section of this website, which has a host of information, including a Frequently Asked Questions section.