A lot of loose ends and not much time

International banking regulators confirmed in January that, from 2004, they would require major banks to reserve capital for the first time against operational risk - that is against such hazards as fraud, computer failure, poor documentation and human error.

Most international bankers contacted by Operational Risk accept the logic of a capital charge for op risk, but several had major reservations about the way the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision is approaching the problem. The commit