President Nicolas Sarkozy of France is miffed that a rogue trader at Société Générale has done reputational damage to French high finance. He has long made it clear that he would like to “moralise” a capitalism that is out of control in its financial dimension.
That noble aspiration will, alas, almost certainly founder on the trading floors of the international banks where various jungle beasts roam free.
These include rogue traders such as Jérôme Kerviel, who cost the big French bank an impressive €4.9bn ($7.2bn).
That is not to say that morality should be left to handwringing bishops and mullahs. There are huge advantages in commercial life in fostering an ethical culture that guides behaviour. Morality in a business organisation can operate as an informal internal control mechanism that reduces monitoring costs.
If there is a culture of integrity in a company it allows people to act decisively because they know what behaviour meets with approval and what does not.
See full Article.
Posts
