The magnitude of the financial system and regulatory reform has been unprecedented. The reforms have focused mainly on the banking, insurance and financial markets and providers of financial services, as well as on the infrastructure supporting these sectors. As regulatory frameworks develop and reforms are implemented, new aspects to financial regulation come to the fore.
At least part of the answer lies in the nature of the downturn and in the policy responses to it. It is frequently claimed that the downturn was the worst since the 1930s. In the financial sectors of some major countries that seems clear, but for economic activity it is actually less clear than you might think.