Regulators frightened by innocuous credit risks are concerned with banks worrying about dealing with money launderers.

Sir, Martin Arnold reports on “growing concern among regulators and politicians about increased risk aversion by banks, which have reacted to a regulatory crackdown and a string of big fines for misconduct by severing links with riskier clients”, “Financial task force warns on banks’ approach to de-risking”, November 14.

Sounds like a cruel joke. Regulators who demonstrate huge risk-adverseness based solely on credit risk perceptions, are now expressing concerns with that banks might be to risk adverse when dealings with clients who could fit the profile of money launderers and terrorist financiers.