Bank Failures Train Spotlight on Shortcomings in Risk Management

As banks and regulators scurry to respond to the most perilous industry conditions since the 2007-08 financial crisis, experts say one persistent issue needs attention: risk oversight that’s not always up to the job.

Board-level risk committees at many banks have neither the clout nor the expertise to push back against corporate leadership, risk professionals say, a weakness that should be addressed in the wake of the recent bank collapses.

The largest banks, those with $50 billion or more in consolidated assets, are required by law to maintain a risk committee that...