Last year's position : Not Placed

If you've heard of Basel II, you probably know it has implications for corporate governance. Roger Cole, proposed by the same panellist who took a gamble on NY State attorney-general Eliot Spitzer last time out, has made it clear that responsibility for risk management in banks lies at board level. Post-Enron, people like Standard & Poors and other ratings agencies are looking for marks of reliability and they're starting with Basel II, several years before it becomes obligatory.

At the top of the crucial Basel II sub-committee is Roger Cole, whose day job is with the US Federal Reserve in NY. It's not only down to him, but he's the figurehead and top man for a new era of reliability and better quality IT.