In an old Indian parable, several blind men struggle to identify an elephant. The first handles the tail and proclaims he has found a rope. The second feels the elephant’s side and thinks he is next to a wall, while the third happens upon a tusk and thinks he has hold of a spear. And so it goes on.

In much the same way, Europe's financial regulators, charged with making markets safer as part of the G20 post-crisis reforms, are drawing conclusions without appearing to have connected the dots. The result is legislative clashes and conflict.