Regulators lack common sense, panel tells conference

There is a "complete lack of common sense" in the way regulators approach rule making and they should adopt a more consultative approach, as the cost of doing business has been rising and market participants are increasingly frustrated with the confusion surrounding new rules, a panel on the impact of regulation told delegates at the FX Week USA conference.

Soren Haagensen, managing director and head of e-commerce, Americas, at Societe Generale was the most vocal in calling for regulators to change their approach to rule making, because market participants are finding the cost burden and resource needs of compliance and interpretation a major drag on business.

"We are constantly wondering what the regulators are going to do next and it has become much more expensive to do business. I need to hire people to make sense of the rules and that's just a cost – it doesn't help the profitability of the business," Haagensen said.

"We are at the back end of the regulatory cycle," said Dino Kos, head of global regulatory affairs at CLS. "The pull is still going on in the direction of more regulation. People shouldn't think the regulatory drive will be over in 12 months' time. It's going to take a lot longer than that."