Capital One 1999 Annual Report Download - page 47

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The Management of Capital One Financial Corporation is
responsible for the preparation, integrity and fair presentation of
the financial statements and footnotes contained in this Annual
Report. The Consolidated Financial Statements have been pre-
pared in accordance with accounting principles generally
accepted in the United States and are free of material mis-
statement. The Company also prepared other information
included in this Annual Report and is responsible for its accu-
racy and consistency with the financial statements. In situations
where financial information must be based upon estimates and
judgments, they represent the best estimates and judgments of
Management.
The Consolidated Financial Statements have been audited
by the Company’s independent auditors, Ernst & Young LLP,
whose independent professional opinion appears separately.
Their audit provides an objective assessment of the degree to
which the Company’s Management meets its responsibility for
financial reporting. Their opinion on the financial statements is
based on auditing procedures, which include reviewing account-
ing systems and internal controls and performing selected tests
of transactions and records as they deem appropriate. These
auditing procedures are designed to provide reasonable assur-
ance that the financial statements are free of material
misstatement.
Management depends on its accounting systems and
internal controls in meeting its responsibilities for reliable finan-
cial statements. In Management’s opinion, these systems and
controls provide reasonable assurance that assets are safe-
guarded and that transactions are properly recorded and
executed in accordance with Management’s authorizations. As
an integral part of these systems and controls, the Company
maintains a professional staff of internal auditors that conducts
operational and special audits and coordinates audit coverage
with the independent auditors.
The Audit Committee of the Board of Directors, composed
solely of outside directors, meets periodically with the internal
auditors, the independent auditors and Management to review
the work of each and ensure that each is properly discharging
its responsibilities. The independent auditors have free access
to the Committee to discuss the results of their audit work and
their evaluations of the adequacy of accounting systems and
internal controls and the quality of financial reporting.
There are inherent limitations in the effectiveness of inter-
nal controls, including the possibility of human error or the
circumvention or overriding of controls. Accordingly, even effec-
tive internal controls can provide only reasonable assurance
with respect to reliability of financial statements and safe-
guarding of assets. Furthermore, because of changes in
conditions, internal control effectiveness may vary over time.
The Company assessed its internal controls over financial
reporting as of December 31, 1999, in relation to the criteria
described in the “Internal Control-Integrated Framework” issued
by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway
Commission. Based on this assessment, the Company believes
that as of December 31, 1999, in all material respects, the
Company maintained effective internal controls over financial
reporting.
management’s report on consolidated
financial statements and internal controls
over financial reporting
Richard D. Fairbank Nigel W. Morris David M. Willey
Chairman and Chief President and Chief Senior Vice President, Corporate
Executive Officer Operating Officer Financial Management