Accredited ACH Professional (AAP) Practice Exam 2025 - Free AAP Practice Questions and Study Guide

Operational risk is related to the potential for unintentional errors that can alter or delay transactions. This type of risk arises from inadequate or failed internal processes, people, or systems, or from external events. In the context of financial transactions, operational risks can manifest through clerical mistakes, system failures, and process inefficiencies, leading to disruptions or inaccuracies in the handling of transactions.

For example, if a transaction is improperly processed due to an error in data entry, this could result in delayed payments or incorrect amounts being sent or received. Such errors may not stem from malicious intent but from the complexities involved in processing financial transactions.

In contrast, fraud risk pertains to intentional wrongdoing aimed at deceiving or stealing, credit risk concerns the likelihood of a borrower failing to meet obligations, and regulatory risk involves the potential for legal or compliance issues due to changes in laws or regulations. These types of risks do not typically arise from unintentional errors in transaction processing as operational risk does.