The scandal also raised significant questions about why American regulators, who had long had evidence of problems at the bank, failed to act quickly.

And it is almost always the case that regulators failed to act, but promise to fix the problem so it will not happen again.

When oil prices increased from 2002 onwards, the regulator failed to approve electricity tariff increases, because they were expected to have been very unpopular.

The House Banking Committee report said the regulators had also failed in their estimates to account for $4.2 billion in tax benefits.

When engaged, the regulator would fail to correctly control the stream of deuterium entering the impulse reactor.

In both cases regulators failed to catch the fraud.

But, as has become obvious during the current crisis, regulators have signally failed to keep a grip on globalised finance.

The study said that in emphasizing "partnership" over punishment, regulators might be failing to fix problems.

The company said California's regulators and legislators had failed to resolve the utility's financial crisis, which resulted from soaring wholesale power prices.

Here, too, regulators failed to pay close attention.