Survey: Too Many Regs Biggest Risk To Financial Industry

For the second year in a row, the financial sector in Europe has ranked excessive regulation as the biggest risk facing their industry. The survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation, called Banking Banana Skins, also found a sharp rise in concern over the risks in the commodity markets, which climbed from No. 14 in 2005 to No. 4 this year. Interest rate concerns ranked No. 5, up from No. 12, and emerging markets are a rising concern, jumping from No. 15 to No. 9. Because of new initiatives introduced by banks and other financial services companies, fraud and money laundering dropped several places.