The regulators behind the Basel rules have tended to think a leverage ratio is too unsophisticated.

ECONOMIST: Simple rules may be best for monitoring banks

Too far away or too unsophisticated, most will either buy a new machine, even when an old one would do, or buy from a reseller at a big mark-up.

ECONOMIST: The new old thing

Borrowers get too easy a ride: not all of them were unsophisticated types, duped by commission-obsessed brokers.

ECONOMIST: Why Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac need to diet