August 15, 2015

“The time it takes to react to a 'misdemeanor', will be in inverse proportion to its seriousness" Parkinson dixit

Sir, Matthew Vincent writes of the much speedier reactions to small time misbehaviors, like catching a ride on the corporate jet, compared to much more egregious behavior, like the manipulation of the Libor “Lessons from the Swedes on accountability" August 15.

It reminds us of Parkinson’s law that states: “The time spent on any item of the agenda will be in inverse proportion to the sum [of money] involved."

Look for instance at how fast the case against the Libor manipulators proceeded when compared to the immensely larger and more serious case with bank regulations. By means of risk weighted capital requirements, the regulators manipulated the allocation of bank credit on a global scale… and the experts have not yet given signs they have even detected their misbehavior… not even in Sweden, whose Stefan Ingves currently chairs the Basel Committee for Banking Supervision.

PS. 

@PerKurowski