Compliance professionals view Trump as a risk to the profession

US presidential candidate Donald Trump is a risk to the compliance profession, according to 80.5% of compliance professionals who filled in a survey by The Risk Advisory Group.

The survey also found that 27% of respondents feel the US elections is one of the biggest risks their businesses faces in the year ahead.

Of those who view Trump as the presidential candidate posing the greater risk to the profession, 22% are concerned about his avowed policy positions, with one respondent stating that he would advocate for “greater protectionism, and impact on the prosperity of our firm’s clients and their customers”.

However, Trump’s alleged unpredictability is the main concern, cited by 78% of respondents. One person cited Trump’s “lack of knowledge and lack of self-control”, and another referring to him as a “loose cannon”. Others are concerned that a Trump Presidency will usher in a period of greater uncertainty, with one expressing the belief that Trump would be “more likely to institute random change”.

For 19.5% of respondents, Hillary Clinton is the candidate posing the greater risk to the compliance profession. However, whereas Trump’s detractors mostly focus on his perceived character flaws, the majority of Clinton’s critics (55%) take issue with her political record and pledges.

One compliance professional fears that Clinton would “probably extend and/or widen US sanctions against Russia, which will cause additional/extended EU sanctions”, another voices concerns that she would be more likely to “use government resources to conduct investigations for political purposes”.