Regulation and compliance special report

Last year saw banks having to comply with an array of new regulations. In Europe, the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive was introduced in November, while the new Basel capital Accord finally came into force in January - although most banks in Europe opted to delay implementation until this month. From hereon in, the largest and most sophisticated banks in Europe and parts of the Middle East and Asia will calculate regulatory capital under the advanced internal ratings-based approach. US