NEW YORK—Dozens of senior risk managers gathered last Monday in New York for the first Risk Management Summit, a two-day networking and educational event that featured expert speakers and executives from leading insurance industry companies.

The Risk Management Summit, presented by Business Insurance, was designed by and for senior risk managers from the largest U.S. and European companies, as well as Risk Managers of the Year and members of the Risk Management Honor Roll.

The keynote luncheon speech Monday was given by Rep. Scott Garrett, R-N.J., who commented on various financial services reform measures pending in the House. Companion financial services reform legislation is expected to be introduced today in the Senate.

“We need certainty in the marketplace with regard to regulatory intervention,” said Rep. Garrett, the ranking Republican on the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises. But he cautioned that “government intervention, while well-intended, often has unintended consequences.”

Rep. Garrett said the notion of a systemic risk regulator for financial services, whether through expanding the powers of the Federal Reserve or creating a new regulatory office, could have unintended consequences. “We had 100 hearings last year on regulatory reform. No one, from the administration on down, was able to define what systemic risk is,” he said.

“Truly, the systemic risk that we should be addressing is the budget deficit,” Rep. Garrett said.

Summaries of other topic experts' comments at the Risk Management Summit will be reported in the March 22 and 29 issues of Business Insurance, and in-depth reporting on the insurance industry panel discussions will a-ppear in the April 5 issue. For more information, visit www.BusinessInsurance.com/RMSummit.